The Odd Connection Between Love and Mysteries
by SerenaHikaru2930
Summary: What if our hero was really a heroine? Could it really change THAT much...? (Persona 4/Golden) [Rating as a 'just in case' nothing too bad I promise.]
1. Chapter 1

Brief Info:

Name: _ _

Age: 16

**Date: April 12**

You sat calmly on the train as you made your way to Yasoinaba Station. You were sent to live here by your parents whom had work to do overseas. You didn't mind, in fact, you welcomed it. Your relationship with your parents was… iffy. They weren't neglectful or awful to you in anyway what-so-ever, it was just that they were always gone or busy that you hardly got chance to see them, or to spend any time with them. It made it hard to have a positive relationship with them. They were simply your parents, nothing else. No one you felt you could lean on or talk to when you needed, just parents.

The train slowly came to a stop as you stood and made your way off the train. You glanced around the area you'd be living at for the next year and smiled softly. It looked nice… very peaceful. It was a bit change from the bustling city which you came from. The air was intoxicatingly fresh and it was strangely quiet, but you happily welcomed it.

"Hey, over here," someone called out to you breaking the silence. You turned you head in the direction of the sound spotting man and a small child, whom you assumed to be your uncle and cousin. You'd be staying with them for an entire year while your parents were away. You made your way over to him; he looked strangely familiar, even though you were almost certain you'd never seen him before. Maybe he just had that kinda face? He wore a gentle smile and had a genuine carefree feel about him.

"How was the train ride? You're not too tired are ya?" He asked smiling. You returned the smile and shook your head 'no'. "Well, let's see, I'm Ryotaro Dojima, I'm your mother's younger brother and that about sums it up." He told you. After he introduced himself, images of long ago flooded through your mind and you smiled more genuinely.

"It's nice to see you again," you said. He chuckled softly and perhaps a bit embarrassed.

"Heh, it sure has been a long time…" He said before glancing down at the small girl nervously shifting beside him.

"Oh, this is my daughter, Nanako." He said introducing her. "Come on, Nanako; introduce yourself to your cousin." He said gesturing for her to speak. You glanced down making eye contact with the small girl. You smiled warmly and gently before chuckling as she retreated behind the safety of her father, peeking at you from behind his leg.

"H-hello…" She softly spoke.

"Aw, come on Nanako, what are you so shy for?" Dojima asked her chuckling slightly mockingly. Nanako pouted in response to his teasing and smacked his back.

"O-Owww…." He said jokingly before turning his attention to you once again. "We should get going, I'm sure you're tired from the long trip, huh?" He kindly took your bags and walked off toward a car you assumed was his. He placed your car in the trunk as he got into the drivers seat. Nanako sat in the passenger's seat leaving you in the back, but you didn't mind. The ride from the station was mostly quiet as you stared out of the window overhearing Dojima mention something about stopping for gas.

When you gazed out of the window, you spotted a seemingly popular inn and a young girl, about your age, standing at the entrance in a form fitting kimono. 'She's pretty…' You thought as you road by. A bit further down the road, you spotted a large store called Junes. You overheard Nanako singing something involving the name of the store; you assumed it was the logo. Junes seemed to be very busy, because a young boy, also seemingly about your age, was running around frantically trying to keep everything in order around the crowded tables in the food court outside. You couldn't help but find this humorous.

You glanced up as the car came to a halt at the gas station Dojima was talking about. He exited the car and you took this opportunity to stretch your, already stiff from the long train ride, legs. You vaguely caught sight of Nanako as she ran off to the restroom. You stretched feeling a bit sleepy.

"Are you going on a trip?" Someone asked.

"No we just went to pick her up. She came from the city." Dojima informed the attendant.

"The city, huh? How exciting." He replied.

"Fill it up while you're at it." Dojima said kindly informing the man to do his job instead of yapping his mouth.

"Yes sir!" The boy said, but remained standing in the same spot glancing a bit in your direction.

"Good time as any for a smoke…" Dojima muttered to himself wandering off. You silently watched him trying to ignore the stares from the attendant. You looked over at him feeling him approach you.

"Does it surprise you to see how little there is to do out here? There's so little to do, you'll probably be bored fast. You'll either be hanging out with your friends or doing part time jobs. Speaking of which, we're actually looking for part time help right now. Think about it wont ya? We don't care if you're a student." He informed you taking a step toward you extending his hand out to you. Politely you shook it nodding genuinely in return. 'This guy sure talks a lot… and there's no sign in the window saying they're hiring…? That's weird.' You thought to yourself, keeping a friendly façade.

"Oh, I should get back to work!" He said quickly walking away to fill Dojima's gas tank. Nanako returned shortly after. A sudden strange feeling erupted in your stomach s your head started to ache. You cringed slightly.

"What's wrong? Did you get carsick?" Nanako asked you shyly and a bit worriedly.

"No, it's nothing, I'm alright…" You said. "Just a bit a little tired." You reassured feeling slightly spaced out.

"You're probably just tired from the long trip. Why don't you walk it off, stretch you legs a bit? It'll help you know your way around while you're at it." Dojima interjected returning to the car after finishing his cigarette. You nodded assuming taking a walk to clear your head would be a good idea.

"Nanako and I will wait here for him to finish," he said directing toward the lollygagging attendant. "Don't wander too far." He smiled softly and you nodded before wandering off. You glanced around the small shopping district. There were a few people who looked about your age, but they all looked busy or too engulfed in their conversations to take notice to you.

You proceeded to the south side of the shopping district spotting a boy who looked about a year younger than you. He wore dark, gothic attire and had bleach blonde hair. After a moment, it seemed he took notice to you and scoffed.

"What the hell are you looking at?! Get bent!" He yelled before storming off angrily. You blinked feeling confused and a bit offended.

"Wow that was rude," someone said. You raised an eyebrow before turning to meet the curious eyes of a girl. She had striking light brown eyes and short light brown hair. "Want some steak?" She offered handing you a stick. "It's tender and delicious~" she said with a silly grin. You smiled and nodded happily taking the stick of meat from the girl, happy to see a friendly face.

"Are you new to Inaba?" She suddenly asked. "I've never seen you around before." You nodded.

"Yeah, I just arrived today from the city."

"The city, that's cool!" She said. "Are you going to be going to school? Which one?" She questioned.

"Oh, yes I will, Yasogami High. I'm a second year." You replied taking a bit of your steak. It wasn't very tender, but it was delicious.

"Isn't the steak delicious! I LOVE it!" She said taking the entire steak off of the stick in one bite. You sweat dropped as you watched her. "Really, me too! Maybe we'll be in the same class!" She said with her mouth full.

"Maybe," you said smiling as you continued to eat.

"The city must be exciting!" The girl said finally swallowing the massive amount of steak she had in her mouth.

"Sometimes," you said and she chuckled.

"Oh, I almost forgot, I'm Ch-"

"Hey _, come on, let's get going!" Dojima called out to you.

"Oh, I'm sorry I'll see you at school." You said before waving before making your way back to the gas station.

"Oh okay, bye!" She said waving to you as you left. 'She seemed nice…' You speculated as you walked.

Once you arrived at Dojima's home, you unpacked and rearranged the small room given to you by Dojima. It was right in-between Nanako and Dojima's rooms. Once you were finished, you were called down to eat dinner with the two. You joined them at the table sitting down in front of the, already prepared, plate sitting on the table.

"I hope you're settling in well," Dojima said smiling kindly. "It's just me and Nanako here, so it'll be nice to have someone else around." He said.

"Thank you so much for allowing me to stay here with you, Ojisama. (Uncle)" You said politely. Dojima chuckled slightly impressed by your respectful response.

"No need to be so formal, we are family after all. My house is your house now." He said smiling. You smiled back as you started to eat before hearing Dojima's phone ring. Nanako pouted slightly and you raised a curious eyebrow. Dojima excused himself from the table and spoke briefly on the phone before hanging up.

"Looks like I made the right decision to skip the booze…" He muttered and you chose to ignore the comment. Dojima once again excused himself, telling you and Nanako not to wait up for him as he left the house to do something seemingly work related, much to Nanako's dismay. You made a mental note to wrap up his dinner for him, so he could eat it later.

"Does Ojisama do that often?" You asked Nanako who nodded sadly.

"Uh-huh, it's always like this. Dad's a detective and he gets called out a lot…" She told you returning her attention to the TV with a sigh. You didn't respond as you listened to the alleged scandal about the council secretary Taro Namatame having an affair with a local TV reporter name Mayumi Yamano. He had cheated on the popular enka singer Misuzu Hiragi.

"This is boring…" Nanako grumbled changing the channel. A commercial appeared showing the store you passed by today, Junes.

"At Junes, everyday is Customer Appreciation Day. Come see for yourself and get in touch with our products." A feminine voice said followed by a catchy song. "Every day's great at your Junes~"

"Every day's great at your Junes~!" Nanako sang happily.

"Do you like that song Nanako-chan." You asked her smiling kindly. She shyly nodded.

"Uh-huh, I'm the best in my class!" She said proudly.

"Of course! I should've known, you sing so beautifully." You complimented with a wink. She giggled and blushed brightly.

"T-thank you!" You chuckled as you spent sometime getting to know Nanako before wrapping up Dojima's food, putting her to bed and going to bed yourself to get some rest for the upcoming day of school in the morning.

You laid down to get some sleep rather early after setting your alarm. You fell asleep almost immediately as you slipped into a rather… strange dream. It was rather vivid and very intimidating, regardless, you were able to sleep mostly peaceful through the night.


	2. Chapter 2

**Date: April 13**

You woke up to the sound of your alarm and grumbled slightly. You smacked the clock, turning it off, as your eyes fluttered open. It was the start a new day and you'd be attending your first day at YasogamiHigh School. You had hoped that you'd be able to meet up with the friendly girl you'd seen yesterday in the shopping district. It'd be nice to see a familiar face, even if you didn't exactly know her.

You took a quick bath, styled your hair and applied your make up before hearing a soft knock at the door.

"Breakfast is ready…" Nanako's shy voice called through the door. You smiled slightly just realizing how hungry you really were before making your way down the steps. You glanced around for a short second to see that Dojima wasn't in the kitchen.

"Is Ojisama not here?" You asked curiously walking further into the kitchen. You glanced down at the plate full of food you assumed Nanako had to have made, since he wasn't here.

"No, he got a call, so he had to go." She said nonchalantly. You nodded a bit.

"So you cooked all of this?" You questioned. It looked delicious, you were very impressed.

"Uh-huh, I can make toast and sunny side up eggs in morning. Dad can't cook, so I usually buy dinner." She said sitting down at the table. You nodded a bit joining her. 'So the take-out last night wasn't a special occasion for my arrival after all? How disappointing…' You thought; although, you didn't exactly mean it in a bad way. You debated on going to Junes after school with Nanako to perhaps buy some food to make a decent meal for the two. You were a pretty impressive chef, so you thought it'd be nice to make something for them.

Once the two of you finished eating, you helped Nanako wash the dishes before she turned to you with a shy smile.

"Your first day of school is today, right? It's on the way, so I'll walk with you." She said and you nodded.

"Okay, let's go." You said grabbing the umbrella Dojima bought for you to take to school, since it was raining today. Dojima seemed to know you better than you thought, since he'd chosen your favorite color umbrella. The thought made you smile, there's no way your parents could've told him, because they didn't know themselves, so he must've just remembered it from so long ago. It was a small gesture, but none-the-less, very sweet of him.

You and Nanako proceeded to school quietly. She still seemed wary and shy around you and you racked your brain trying to think of a way to break the silence. You thought back to your idea about dinner and glanced over at her.

"Hey, Nanako-chan, would you like to come with me to Junes and buy some stuff to make dinner?" You asked her with a gentle smile. She smiled happily and nodded.

"Uh-huh! Okay, let's go!" She replied happily. Junes seemed to be a place she was really fond of.

"Okay, once we get home, we can go together." You told her and she smiled and nodded, already looking forward to the trip.

"Did you have an idea of what you'd like me to make?" You questioned.

"Y-you're going to cook?" She asked. It seemed she assumed you'd just pick up something simple that could go in the microwave and cook in a few minutes or perhaps something from the food court.

"Yeah, is that okay?"

"Uh-huh! I want some curry!" She said still smiling happily. You chuckled, it was a very basic and common food, but it was easy and it tasted good, so it was a nice suggestion.

"Curry it is then~!" You said and she cheered.

"Yay~ I can't wait!" She said before stopping. "You just keep going straight from here. Well, my school is this way, bye!" She happily walked off in the other direction before you proceeded to school. 'So much for being on the way,' you thought chuckling. You thought you were making great progress with Nanako today and was looking forward to the curry now yourself.

You were so involved in your thoughts that you hadn't heard the strange squeaking of a bike behind you.

"Whoa-whoa-whoa- hey look out!" Someone called directing your attention as you looked behind you at the boy riding a bike that looked as if it would fall apart any second. You gasped slightly realizing there was no way to avoid it now that he was so close. The boy, trying not to hurt you or himself, simply jumped off the bike practically tackling you to the ground as his bike road passed you crashing into some nearby trashcans.

The boy groaned softly as he laid on you.

"O-ow…" He grumbled. You looked up at him, recognizing him as the boy you spotted at Junes on your way to Dojima's house yesterday. He was just as goofy running around crazily as he was trying to ride his bike; although, he was much more handsome up close. You chuckled softly at the thought. This seemed to catch his attention as he gazed down at you before his face flushed and he quickly scrambled to his feet.

"O-oh, s-sorry," he said helping you up. You dusted off your skirt and shook your head.

"It's alright, let's just not make a habit of it, okay?" You said smiling slightly over to him. He chuckled slightly running his hand through his hair, obviously embarrassed and perhaps a little nervous.

"I uh… I didn't hurt you did I?" He questioned and you shook your head 'no'.

"No, I'm alright, but we better hurry. I don't want to be late on my first day." You said chuckling as you began walking with him to class. You attempted to open your umbrella, but it must've broken when the boy tackled you to the ground. You pouted slightly not wanting to get soaked.

"What's wrong? Did something happen to your umbrella? Oh… I must've done that, huh? Sorry! Here you can share mine." He said holding the umbrella over your head.

"Really, thanks!" You said smiling at him.

"Heh, no problem." He said. "By the way, I'm Yosuke Hanamura, you're the transfer student, right? Everyone's been talking about you." You blinked slightly surprised.

"They know already?" You asked and he laughed at you.

"Yeah, news travels fast in the sticks."

"It would seem so… Well, I'm _ _, it's nice to meet you, Yosuke-kun." Yosuke chuckled softly and smiled.

"Yeah, it's nice to meet you too." He offered you an attempted charming smile to which you smiled genuinely back. You listened quietly to the two loudly gossiping students beside you.

_"Wow Yosuke's already hitting on the transfer student?" _

_"She's new and I can already tell she can definitely do better." _

_"That's so like Yosuke to try something like that. What's he thinking trying to be all sweet? Wait until she finds out how perverted he is!"_

_"I don't know, don't they both come from the city? Maybe they know one another?"_

_"No way! If she knew him, they wouldn't be talking." _

_"Well maybe she likes guys like him?"_

_"Yeah right!"_

"You're from the city too?" You asked him curiously, not taking any notice to the negative comments the girls made. Yosuke simply sighed and nodded.

"Yeah, I moved out here six months ago…" He said. "Sorry about them. I'm probably gonna ruin you rep if you hang around me too much." He chuckled as if he was joking, but it was easy to tell he wasn't.

"Nonsense, I don't care about things like that. Who cares what people think of me? I'm me, right? Their comments aren't going to change that, nor are they going to affect my opinion of you." You bluntly stated smiling genuinely at him. Yosuke seemed very surprised by your answer, but smiled gratefully draping an arm across your shoulders.

"Ya know, _, I think this is the start to a great friendship~." He said as the two of you walked inside.

"Whatever you say, Yosuke-kun." You said playfully rolling your eyes. He just laughed happily.

The two of you checked the board to see where your homerooms were and were pleased to see that you were in the same class. Yosuke took it upon himself to walk you to the faculty office to get checked in before he made his way to his homeroom. Even with the delay, it seemed you weren't late, which was a relief. Your homeroom teacher entered the faculty office looking you over skeptically before walking with you to the classroom. He kept glancing at you seemingly looking for something, anything that would scream 'delinquent' about you.

The two of you walked into the loud gossiping classroom and you looked around. You spotted the girl from yesterday and smiled, happy to see she was in the room too. She seemed to have spotted you too, because she grinned happily and waved. Yosuke seemed to raise an eyebrow curious how the two of you knew one another.

"Everyone shut up!" The teacher scolded and the classroom fell silent. "Now I hate to waste my time, but I better introduce this transfer student, this sad sack was tossed out of the city and-" 'Activate tune out the asshole, effective immediately.' You thought as you completely blew him off.

"Hey! Did you hear me you little brat? I said introduce yourself!" He scolded.

"Hm? Oh, I'm sorry, I tend to tune out assholes." You replied and a slight gasp was heard over the group. "I'm _ _, it's nice to meet you all, I hope we get along well." You said smiling. The teacher, whom you now know as Mr. Morooka, glared at you.

"That's it; you're on my shit list effective immediately!" He said. You rolled your eyes.

"Um, excuse me! Can the transfer student sit here?" The girl whom you met in the shopping district, requested.

"Hm? Oh, yeah sure. You hear that? You're seats over there. Now hurry up and siddown already!" He said and you sighed softly making you way to your seat and sat down.

"He's the worst, huh? Rotten luck that you'd get stuck in this class, oh well, guess we'll have to hang in there for a year." She said and you chuckled nodding.

"Heh, don't worry, I'll take care of her." Yosuke said winking in your direction. You sweat dropped and the girl rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, sure, whatever." She said and you giggled at his pouting face. You rested your chin in your hands as you listened to the gossiping start all over again.

_"Dude, she's hotter than I thought she'd be!"_

_"Man, do you think I have a chance?"_

_"Hell no, I heard she's already with someone."_

_"Seriously, who?"_

_"Yosuke! I heard they even walked to school together." _

_"No way, she'd never date a loser like him. Even I'M better than him."_

_"Yeah, I guess you're right, but wait… does that mean I have a chance too?!"_

_"Did you hear what she said to King Moron?"_

_"Yeah, that was so cool!"_

_"Who knew people from the city were so bold!"_

_"I hope she doesn't get expelled for that." _

"Alright, shut your traps!" Mr. Morooka said as the class slowly stopped its rambling and class finally began.

**After School: **

"Alright, regular sermons will start tomorrow." Morooka said as he walked toward the door, happy that school was over.

"Attention all teachers are to report for a brief staff meeting. All students are to return to their classroom and not leave until further notice. Do not leave the school building. I repeat…" The announcement rang.

"You heard the announcement, stay put!" Morooka said as she made his way out of the classroom.

You yawned and stretched as you spotted Yosuke attempting to approach you before he was bulldozed aside by the mass of students trying to speak to you.

"Hey! If you're interested in joining a club, you should come talk to me! We're looking for members and I'd love it if you joined!"

"Uh, sure I-"

"Yo transfer student, you should join a sport. You've definitely got the body for it."

"Oh, uh, thank you?"

"_-san, tell me you're not dating Yosuke!"

"Um… No I'm not we're just-"

"Seriously?! Then do you have a boyfriend?!"

"No but-"

"Hey! Leave her alone! Step away from the transfer student!" The girl said getting into an unusual karate stance and intimidating all of the students.

"Jeez, they act like they've never seen a person before…" You muttered watching them all stalk away. The girl laughed.

"They're just curious." She said grinning. A girl slightly taller than her stood behind her. You recognized her as the girl standing in the entrance way of the inn you passed by yesterday.

"Yeah, reeeaaal curious." You grumbled and the two girls laughed.

"Attention all students, there's been an accident in the shopping district. There has been police dispatched in the school distract. Please leave school in an orderly manner. Do not disturb the police officers, go directly home. I repeat…" The announcement rang.

_"Wait something really happened?!" _

_"Come on, let's go check it out~!"_

You smiled slightly, glad that the attention was drawn elsewhere. You stood up and stretched a bit.

"Oh, nearly forgot again, I'm Chie Satonaka and this is Yukiko Amagi." She said introducing her and her friend.

"Um… hello…" Yukiko shyly introduced herself. You smiled, she reminded you of Nanako.

"It's nice to meet you, Yukiko-san and it's nice to see you again, Chie-san." You said. The two flushed slightly embarrassed by your respectful greeting.

"Aw come on, we're friends right, just call me Chie." Chie said chuckled and Yukiko nodded.

"Y-yeah, me too," she said nervously.

"Well, alright…" You said smiling as the three of you made you way toward the exit. You were stopped by Yosuke who looked a bit uncomfortable.

"Uh… This was awesome. I mean the way they moved was just… incredible, so… it was an accident please just have mercy on me until my next paycheck!" He begged handing Chie a DVD case and quickly trying to scurry away.

"Hey! Stop right there! What did you do to my DVD?!" She demanded chasing after him and kicking him pretty hard. You and Yukiko visibly cringed at the sight as you approached them. Chie opened the case before gasped.

"I can't believe this! It's totally cracked! My 'Trial of the Dragon'!" She said dramatically.

"'Trial of the Dragon'?" You questioned Yukiko who informed you that it was Chie's favorite movie to which you nodded glancing over at poor Yosuke.

"Um… are you alright?" Yukiko asked slightly worried.

"Oh, Yukiko-san, are you worried about me?" He asked trying to sound charming, but in a bit too much pain to do so.

"He's fine Yukiko! Let's ditch him and go home." Chie retorted as she started to walk out of the classroom. You chuckled seeing him.

"Come on, I'll walk you home," you offered smirking slightly. Yosuke brightened up at the idea, seemingly all better.

"Really, okay let's g-"

"No way, you're not walking home with this DVD murder!" Chie said gripping your arm and tugging you off.

"Aw come on!" Yosuke called back earning another painful kick from Chie.

The three made your way out of the school building and headed down the hill toward you homes. You were stopped by a boy standing in the way. You raised an eyebrow at how… odd he looked. He was wearing a different uniform then you, so you knew he wasn't from this school.

"You're Yuki, right? Did you wanna go out sometime?" The boy nervously asked.

"W-what? Who are you?" Yukiko asked feeling slightly intimidated. You watched quietly deciding to let Yukiko handle the situation herself. You caught wind of a few students overseeing the conversation as well.

_"Hey who's that? He's not from our school is he?" _

_"Never mind that, he's going for Yukiko-san? Man, he could've at least waiting until she was alone to make his move."_

_"I bet you a can of TaP he gets knocked out!"_

_"Tch, no bet, you know how difficult the Amagi challenge is."_

"W-well are you coming or not?!" The boy demanded bringing your attention back to the two.

"I-I'm not going…" Yukiko said turning down the strange boy.

"Fine!" He said angrily storming off. 'How childish…' You thought with a small frown.

"W-what did he want from me?" She asked you and Chie feeling slightly intimidated.

"What did he want? Well obviously he was asking you out on a date!" Chie said.

"Really?" Yukiko asked and you chuckled.

"Yeah, but that was really over the top! It was creepy how he called you Yuki all of a sudden!" She said. You nodded.

"Yeah, he didn't even bother to introduce himself." You said frowning before hearing squeaking which you knew was Yosuke's poor bike.

"Turn down another love-lorn fool, huh Yukiko-san? Man, you're cruel. You got me the same way last year." Yosuke said shaking his head. Chie rolled her eyes and you just smiled knowingly.

"I don't recall doing that." You almost laughed. Yukiko was so innocent it was cute.

"Wait really? Then do you wanna go out sometime?"

"I'd rather not." Yosuke pouted.

"That'll get me to get my hopes up." He said sighing. You giggled softly and he pouted.

"You too, _? Man women are murderous." He said. "Anyway, don't pick on poor _ too much, okay?" He said winking at you before getting on his bike and taking off.

"We're just curious is all!" Chie interjected stomping her feet, but Yosuke was long gone.

"I'm sorry to drag you into all of this…" Yukiko said politely.

"Come on let's just go! Everyone is staring!" Chie said walking off. You and Yukiko followed soon after.

Chie had pointed out how to get around the small town, where the best places were to shop and the best restaurants there were. Yukiko didn't say much, but you could tell she seemed pleased to be walking home with the two of you.

"So you're here because of your parent's job, huh?" Chie asked. "Man, I thought it was something much more serious." You shook your head 'no' and smiled.

"There really is nothing to do out here, huh?" Chie muttered and you glanced out at the area around you. It was rather barren, but you liked it. The silence was comforting. You were taken from your thoughts vaguely hearing Chie mutter about famous pottery or something?

"Oh, yeah, there's the Amagi Inn! It's the pride of Inaba!" Chie informed you and you glanced over to her.

"What? I-it's just an old inn…" Yukiko muttered her mood dampening a bit. You raised an eyebrow at this.

"No way! It's seriously a big deal! It been here for generations and it basically keeps this town up and running. Yukiko's parents run it and someday she's going to take over!" You nodded slightly seeing Yukiko's frowning expression. You were about to ask her about it when Chie butted in.

"You think Yukiko is cute, right?" She asked. You blinked and raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I think she's pretty…" You commented. "Oohh, so THAT'S why you turned down that creepy guy! But I'm sorry I'm not into women."

"W-what?! N-no no no no! I'm not like that either!" Yukiko defended her face a bright red. Chie laughed.

"She's really popular and lots of guys like her, but she's never a boyfriend, don't you think that's weird?" She asked and you shrugged.

"Not really…"

"T-that's not true okay! It's not true that I'm popular or that I've never had a boyfriend, w-wait, no, no, no what I meant to say was, I don't NEED a boyfriend! Jeez… Chie…" Chie couldn't contain her laughter as the three of you walked in the shopping district; Chie had offered to show you the way to Junes, so you could take Nanako there later.

"Sorry, sorry. It's just, we finally get the chance to speak to someone from the city and you've barely said a word!" Chie said still giggling.

"What about Yosuke? He's from the city." You commented.

"Forget him! DVD murder…" Chie hissed stomping off. You and Yukiko sweat dropped sighing before following her.

You came upon the south side of the shopping district and overheard a woman gossiping to another as they stood behind caution tape.

_"So apparently the student left school early and when she came around the corner-"_

_"Oh wow, I can't believe they found something like THAT hanging from an antenna!"_

_"I know! I wanted to see it too!"_

_"Oh you just missed it the fire department took it down just a moment ago!"_

_"I still can't believe a dead body showed up around here!"_

"Wha- a dead body!?" Chie said in a hushed voice as you watched the scene quietly. A young detective ran passed you before vomiting in the bushes nearby. 'Poor guy…' You thought watching him. Dojima scolded him and you blinked at his sudden behavior, but it was fitting for him in this situation.

"Hm? What're you three doing here?" He questioned. He gave you a suspicious look that made you a bit worried to tell him the truth for some reason.

"Chie and Yukiko were just showing me the way to Junes, so Nanako and I could go sometime." You said. He nodded.

"Well you better get home; it's not safe right now." He told you. "Damn principle, I told him not to let them out this way…"

"You know him?" Chie asked curiously.

"Hm? Oh, I'm Detective Dojima, her uncle. Uh… how should I put this… I hope you get along with her." He said. You pouted what's he think you were unlikable or something. He walked away to get back to business.

"Hey um… guys, let's go to Junes another time, okay? We better get home." Chie said and you nodded.

"Sounds like we should, I'll see you two tomorrow." You said waving to them as you made your way home.

Once inside Dojima's home, you spotted Nanako waiting for you.

"Did you hear about the incident?" Nanako asked with a frown. You nodded. "Dad's not coming home tonight…" You nodded again, sadly.

"D-did you still want to go get some food at Junes?" She asked you slightly hopeful. You were a bit worried about going out a night, but the expression on her face gave you no choice.

"Sure, let's go." You said smiling. It wasn't too late and you were sure you'd be home before it got dark out. You grabbed a flash light, just in case and walked with a happy Nanako out the door and toward Junes.

Once there, you grabbed a cart walking toward the counter grabbing the needed ingredients to make your curry. Nanako smiled happily pushing the cart and singing. You chuckled softly as you reached up to grab something that was a bit out of reach. You paused feeling someone lightly press against you as they reached up to grab it for you.

"Here…" They said grabbing it and handing it to you. You turned around glancing up to see the boy you saw at the shopping district yesterday, the one that yelled at you…

"Oh, thank you." You said smiling at him and he blushed lightly looking away.

"Whatever…" He grumbled walking off. You chuckled softly and Nanako raised an eyebrow.

"That was weird…" She said.

"You said it. That guy was all over you man," Yosuke said suddenly standing beside you in his Junes uniform. You jumped slightly glancing over at him.

"He was just helping me grab something. You were probably just standing there watching me." You said frowning.

"W-wha- hey!... Well… maybe." He said and you rolled your eyes.

"Cute uniform though," you said winking. His face flushed slightly.

"I know aren't they? Reeeaaal girl magnets…" He grumbled. You laughed as the three of you walked toward the check out counter.

"Shopping huh?" Yosuke said.

"Isn't that what Junes is for?" You questioned and he pouted.

"Well… yeah… stupid question, huh?" He said chuckling and you nodded.

"Yosuke can you help me over here!" Once of the workers called and Yosuke sighed.

"Yeah, I'm coming! See you tomorrow, _." He said before running. Nanako, who'd been cowering behind your leg, glanced up at you.

"What was that?" She asked curiously.

"His name is Yosuke; he goes to school with me."

"I think he likes you!" She said giggled. You chuckled along with her glancing over at him as he waved at you with a grin, before almost dropping some expensive plates, but quickly catching them before they hit the ground.

"Ya think so?" You responded smiling as you walked up to the lady at the cash register and she rang up your ingredients. Her name tag said _Saki_ and she held a forced smile. She looked a bit stressed and maybe a little sad.

"Here ya go, that'll be 4,000 yen…" She said and you nodded handing her the money with a soft smile. She returned the smile the best she could before you and Nanako left Junes.

It was a short walk back and you were glad to be home before it got too dark. It didn't take you long make the curry for you and Nanako and made a plate for Dojima before sitting down with her to eat. The TV was on broadcasting something about the murder that happened in the shopping district and not too long after you sat down did you heard about how the deceased was Mayumi Yamano; the alleged woman who had an affair with Taro Namatame; the council secretary. They assumed it had something to do with the scandal and were questioning Misuzu Hiiragi and Taro Namatame.

Thankfully, Nanako seemed too busy enjoying her dinner to notice the incident on the News. She only glanced up upon hearing the all-too-familiar Junes commercial playing.

"Every day's great at your Junes~!" She sang along and you smiled. She was so cute. After finishing you food, you helped Nanako clean up the house a bit before she headed off to bed. You began to write Dojima a note telling him where to find his food, when you heard the door quietly open. You glanced in the direction of the door with a curious glance.

"Oh, Ojisama welcome home." You greeted kindly.

"What're you still doing up? It's late." He said taking his shoes off and tiredly making his way into the home.

"I had just put Nanako to bed and was writing you a note to tell you where your dinner was, since I cooked tonight and then I was going to go to sleep." You said.

"Hm…" Was all Dojima seemed to have to say as he fished through the refrigerator taking out the curry you'd put aside for him and sitting down at the table with a stress and sleepy expression. You sighed, he reminded you of your parents at the moment. You poured him something to drink, placed it on the table and walked toward your room.

"Good night, Ojisama." You said as you started up the steps.

"_," Dojima started stopping you for a brief moment. "Thank you." He said flashing you a small thankful smile and you returned it offering a brief nod before going up to your room.

**That Night: **

You laid down to sleep quickly after returning to your room. You were tired from your long day and after all that happened with the strange death of Mayumi Yamano, you were happy to be safe and sound in your warm bed. You drifted off to sleep rather quickly with a small smile.

You heard an unusual chuckle as you saw nothing but fog around you. Weren't you just in bed? After a short moment something that looked like a limo pulled up in front of you as you stepped toward it. The door opened for you inviting you inside. Once inside, you spotted a mysterious looking woman along with a male whom looked equally as mysterious... well from what you could passed his nose.

"Ah... It seems we have a guest with an intriguing destiny..." The bizarre looking man said chuckling. He must've been the one you'd heard before. 'My name is Igor... I am delighted to make your acquaintance. This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter... It is a room that only those who are bound by a "contract" may enter... It may be that such a fate awaits you in the near future. Now then... Why don't you introduce yourself...?"  
"Um… I'm _ _..."  
"Hm... I see. Now, let's take a look into your future, shall we?"  
"My… future?" You questioned as a stack of cards appeared in front of you. You blinked wondering how they had gotten there.

"Do you believe in fortune telling?" He asked rather amused.

"No." You said bluntly and he chuckled.

"Such an honest child." The woman said sitting beside him. The man makes a small motion and the stack is spread out across the table.  
"Each reading is done with the same cards, yet the result is always different... Life itself follows the same principles, doesn't it?" Igor asked you as he chuckled again. He flipped a card over, his expression still unreadable. "Hm... The Tower in the upright position represents the immediate future. It seems a terrible catastrophe is imminent. The card indicating the future beyond that is..." You listened intently, now interested. 'Does he mean the Yamano case? Does that mean something is going to happen to someone close to me?!' You thought now feeling suddenly worried before you paused. 'W-wait! This is just fortune telling, it's not real!... R-right?' Your mind was racing as you listened.

"The Moon, in the upright position. This card represents "hesitation" and "mystery"... Very interesting indeed. It seems you will encounter a misfortune at your destination, and a great mystery will be imposed upon you. In the coming days, you will enter into a contract of some sort, after which you will return here. The coming year is a turning point in your destiny... If the mystery goes unsolved, your future may be forever lost. My duty is to provide assistance to our guests to ensure that does not happen." Igor snapped his fingers and the card vanished. You blinked rapidly and glanced back up at him. "Ah! I have neglected to introduce my assistant to you. This is Margaret. She is a resident of this place, like myself." He gestured to the woman sitting beside him.  
"My name is Margaret. I am here to accompany you through your journey." She said smiling gently and warmly. You nodded slightly, your mind still clouded with thoughts from Igor's fortune telling.  
"We shall attend to the details another time. Until then, farewell..." Igor said chuckling as the limo was suddenly flooded with fog again and everything started to fade.


	3. Chapter 3

**Date: April 14:**

The strange dream suddenly faded as the sound of your alarm clock rang in your ears instead. You grumbled softly as you turned it off, got up and prepared for the morning. Once downstairs, you spotted Nanako placing some curry in a bowl to have for lunch at school today. You smiled slightly, glad that you had decided to go to Junes. Dojima was in the living room tying his shoes. He stood up and glanced over at you as you stood at the bottom of the steps.

"Oh you're up, well, I'm off." He said taking the second bowl Nanako had prepared as walked out of the house. 'So he decided to take some too? Well, I'm glad everyone likes it.' You thought with a pleased smile.

"Um… I made you a bowl too!" Nanako said offering it to you. "Um… you got up late, so you don't have to eat…" She informed you and you pouted slightly. You were hungry, but you didn't want to be late. It was raining again today and your umbrella was broken. You sighed; today was going to be a day…

You bid farewell to Nanako and ran off toward Yasogami to avoid getting too soaked. As you neared the front of the school an all too familiar bike ran passed you and crashed into some trashcans in front of you.

"S-someone…" a familiar voice begged as they rolled around in the trashcan attempting to get out. You giggled walking over to him.

"Okay hold still I'm going to get you out." You said grabbing the trashcan, but he turned suddenly.

"Huh, _?" He said jerking you as you managed to pull the trashcan off of him, but fell onto him in the process. He laughed it off with a grin.

"How is it that we keep ending up like this?" He asked. You sighed, but smiled.

"I don't know…" You said getting up and looking down at your wet clothes before frowning.

"Man you're soaked. Forget to get another umbrella at Junes last night?" He asked.

"It's your fault my umbrella is broken in the first place! I really liked that umbrella too…" You snapped crossing your arms over you chest.

"Hey! I said I was sorry…" He said pouting. "Here we can share mine again." You sighed regretted your rude attitude.

"I'm sorry, thanks. Are you okay?" You asked glancing over at him.

"Yeah, I'll make it." He said chuckling. "So what's got ya so down? Homesick?" You shook your head.

"No, I just had a really weird dream last night and it's just been bothering me, plus I got up late, didn't have time to eat breakfast and had to run here in the rain and now my hair is all messed up…"

"Heh, I think your hair looks fine." Yosuke took it upon himself to pat your head in mock affection and you pouted slightly. "Weird dream, huh? What was it about? Oh crap! We're gonna be late! Wanna ride? It's a little squeaky but it's alright." You sweat dropped, but you didn't have much a choice. You nodded getting onto the back on Yosuke's bike and held his waist tightly as he speeded down the street.

Once you were inside Chie spotted you and offered you her extra uniform. It was a bit tight about the bust-line, since she was smaller than you, and the skirt was a bit too short too, since you were taller than her, but it fit. Yosuke didn't seem to mind as he happily gawked as you walked passed him in class.

"Thanks again for letting me borrow the uniform, Chie." You said smiling at her.

"Hey no problem~, what're friends for, right?" She said grinning and you smiled back. You spotted Yosuke eating away at whatever it was he had and it smelled delicious. You turned to him glaring.

"You knew I hadn't had breakfast and you had food this whole time!" You said glaring at him. He chuckled nervously.

"I-I was gonna share!" He attempted to defend.

"Yeah right, liar!" You said crossing your arms over your chest and turning away from him.

"Aw, come on, I really was! Here have some." He said offering his food to you.

"Yay, thank you Yosuke-kun!" You said snatching the food from his hands and eating it happily.

"H-hey, don't eat it all! That's my breakfast too ya know!" He said trying to snatch it from you.

"Breakfast? Is that steak! Can I have a bite?!" Chie asked.

"Wha- No! It's mine." Yosuke said and you nodded offering her a bite, which she happily took.

"Oooohh~! This is so good!" She said.

"Isn't it!" You said.

"Yukiko try this!" Chie said.

"Aw come on guys!" Yosuke said frowning. Yukiko raised an eyebrow before taking a small bite.

"Wow, this IS really good." She said happily taking another bite, this one bigger than the last. The three of you ignored the frantic Yosuke as you ate his food. After a minute he managed to snatch the food from your hands granting him the last small bite. He pouted down at the empty bowl.

"We're sorry, Yosuke-kun…" You said.

"Yeah, we're sorry…" Chie and Yukiko said.

"You guys owe me for this!" He said sulking.

"Um my 'Trial of the Dragon!" Chie pointed out.

"Yeah and my umbrella, uniform AND I pulled you out of the trashcan this morning." You pointed out.

"You owe US!" You and Chie said making him cringe.

"'Hell hath no fury like a woman's scorn'" Yosuke said sighing. Morooka came in shortly afterward signaling that class had begun.

Lunchtime can quickly as you still pondered the strange dream you had. You were a bit zoned out as you walked out of the faculty office, having warmed your food up in the microwave. You walked back to your seat in the classroom, deciding to eat away from your group of friends to attempt to think about the dream you had.

"Hey there you are," someone said and you glanced up to meet the golden eyes of Yosuke.

"Hm? Did you need something Yosuke-kun?" You asked him taking a bite from your curry.

"I was just wondering where you ran off to. I was waiting for you." He sat down in the chair in front of you, turning to face you.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I just felt like eating in here today is all." Yosuke nodded slightly with a small frown.

"Is it because of that weird dream you had last night? What was it about? Maybe I could help." You sighed unsure if he'd really be able to help you or not, but deciding it was worth a shot you nodded.

"Sure, but promise not to laugh, okay?" You said before you explained the strange dream you had, Igor's weird fortune telling and his strange assistant Margaret. Yosuke snickered and you frowned.

"You promised not to laugh!" You said. Yosuke continued to chuckle a bit before smiling.

"Sorry, _, but seriously that's what's been bothering you? Fortune telling is all fake, right? Plus it was just dream. I doubt anything will happen to your family, the police have this case in the bag, you'll see." He said taking your fork and eating away at your curry.

"Yeah, you're right…" You said nodding. It WAS just a dream after all and fortune telling WAS fake after all and you trusted in Dojima and believe he'd protect you and Nanako and would solve this case quickly. You smiled about to thank Yosuke for talking to you about it before spotting him devouring your curry.

"Damn this is good! Did you make this yourself?" He asked. You snatched it from him and nodded.

"Yes, now quit eating it!" You said as you started eating once again trying to ignore Yosuke's pouting.

"After you ate allllllllll my breakfast this morning, you're going to keep me from enjoying you delicious curry?" He questioned with a pout. You rolled your eyes, but sighed.

"Fiiiine… Jeez…" You said as he happily took it from you. The two of you joked and laughed as you shared the curry. Surprisingly, Nanako had given you quite a bit and there was enough to fill both you and Yosuke's stomachs. It didn't take long for the bell to ring signaling lunch was over and class would be starting soon.

After school, you stood up stretching happily and yawned.

"Man, after lunch today seemed to drag on and on!" Yosuke said standing beside you on the desk. Chie smirked.

"Oh yeah, what happened to you two during lunch? You never showed up. Spending some aloooooone time together~?" You rolled your eyes blushing lightly and Yosuke's face flushed.

"It's not like that!" He said frowning. "Stop assuming things!" Chie laughed at the two of you and smiled.

"Aw, I can't help it. You two would be so cute together." She teased. The two of you rolled your eyes.

"Anyway, I totally owe you for saving me this morning… and for you umbrella… and your uniform and for eating all of you lunch. Damn I owe you a lot…" He said.

"You suuuuure do." You teased smirking at him. He rolled his eyes but chuckled.

"Yeah, yeah, anyway, come on, I'll treat you to some steak! It's the town's delicacy!"

"Uh, what about me?! My 'Trial of the Dragon'!" Chie said frowning.

"Ugh, you always speak up when I'm talking about food…" Yosuke said frowning.

"Don't you think so Yukiko? Shouldn't he treat us too?" Chie asked smirking over to Yukiko.

"I'll have to pass. I don't wanna gain anymore weight and I have to help out at the inn today." Yukiko replied walking off in a bit of a daze. You, Yosuke and Chie raised a curious eyebrow, but shrugged it off.

The three of you made your way to wherever Yosuke had decided to take you. Chie kept singing about steak and how much she loved it and what kind she could get. Yosuke groaned as he tried to tune her out and you patted his shoulder comfortingly.

"Junes! What're we doing here? They don't sell steak here!" Chie said angrily.

"Well when you hopped on the freeloader train I had to make a change of plans." Yosuke replied setting a plate down for the three of you in the Junes food court.

"Still that's no reason to take us to YOUR place." Chie said frowning. You raised a curious eyebrow.

"It's not MY place or anything!" He defended with a frown.

"What do you mean? I thought you just worked here?" You said. Yosuke sighed.

"That's right, you don't know yet…" He said as if it would make you think less of him if you knew. "Well my dad is the manager here. I moved out here six months ago from the city so my dad could take this job." He informed you. You nodded.

"Hm… I see."

"Ya know, Junes hasn't been around that long, but I haven't been to the local shopping district since. A lot of stores there started closing and… uh…" Chie started. Yosuke sighed.

"Come on, you can't blame that all on Junes can you?" He asked frowning. You listened quietly, you didn't know what this place was like before Junes, but you knew Nanako seemed to be very fond of Junes as well as all of the towns people. It was just more convenient, there's no way around it. Yosuke's attention was pulled in another direction as you glanced over at a girl sitting at a table alone in the food court. She looked to be the same girl from yesterday, the cashier when you were buying food at Junes for dinner last night. Yosuke jumped to his feet and happily approached her.

"Oh, Senpai!" He greeted happily.

"Are her and Yosuke-kun close?" You asked curiously as you watched him. Chie snickered.

"He wishes! That's Saki Konishi. She's a third year. Her family runs a local liquor store in the shopping district." She informed you.

"Ah, I see." You said as you watched them exchange words. Yosuke did seem very fond of the older girl, but something about her seemed a bit off… Like… her kind attitude was forced? Perhaps she was just tired?

"What's wrong, _? Jealous?" Chie asked poking you jokingly. You raised an eyebrow before chuckling.

"Psh, yeah right." You said as the two of you laughed it off.

After a moment, Saki and Yosuke approached you.

"You must be the new transfer student. I saw you yesterday, but I didn't even recognize you. I'm sorry. Have you already heard about me?" Saki greeted you kindly. "It's nice to see Hana-chan spending time with someone else. He doesn't have many friends ya know, so I hope you two get along good."

"C-come on, senpai!" Yosuke said pouting.

"He can be a bit of a pain at times, so you have to tell him straight out when he's being annoying, okay?" She told you and you chuckled.

"Na, he's not too bad." You said.

"Like hell he isn't!" Chie added and the three of you laughed while Yosuke pouted.

"Ouch!" He said.

"Oh, well I better get back to work. It was nice to meet you, bye." She said before scurrying off.

"Oh senpai-"Yosuke started, but Saki had already disappeared around the corner tying her apron around her waist.

Yosuke sat down in his seat once again, arms crossed over his chest and legs crossed under the table.

"Senpai is always like that. She has a younger brother and she pretty much treats me the same way." He said chuckling slightly.

"Oh hoho, I get it… So that's how it is…The daughter of a local family-run liquor store and the scion of the invading chain… The flame of forbidden love!" Chie said over dramatically. You rolled your eyes and Yosuke blushed brightly.

"I-It's not like that!" He defended frowning.

"Oh reeeaaally? Well I have just the thing to cure that lovesick heart~!" She said and the two of you raised an eyebrow in questioning.

"You ever hear of the Midnight Channel? You're supposed to look into a TV that's switched off, alone, exactly at midnight on a rainy night." Chie started eerily. "While you're staring at your own image, another person will appear on the screen… And they say that person's your soulmate."

"What? For a second, I thought you were actually going to say something useful…" Yosuke said and you shook your head in disappointment. 'Who believes in those silly things?' You thought. "How can you get all excited over such a childish urban legend like that?"  
"Childish, huh? You don't believe it, do you!?" Chie asked frowning.  
"Of course I don't!" Yosuke said.

"Yeah, I think it's kinda silly too Chie." You said.  
"Well, it's raining tonight! Let's all try it out-then you'll see!"  
"Try it out…? Wait, you haven't even tried it out yourself!? Wow, I'm trying to remember the last time I heard something this stupid…" Yosuke said and you chuckled.

"All that aside, did you guys hear about the… incident' last night? Do you think it was murder?" Yosuke asked changing the subject. "Ooh, what if the culprit behind it was still lurking around…? Heehee…" You frowned.

"Sheesh, you shouldn't joke about stuff like that. Now who's the childish one…?" Chie said frowning.

"That's seriously not funny. My cousin walks these streets ya know!" You said. Yosuke visibly winced at your scolding, kinda ignoring Chie since she was always like that.

"Uh, y-yeah you're right, sorry." He said.

"All I am saying is, you guys better try it out tonight." Chie said trying to lighten the tension in the group. The two of you nodded.

After eating with the two, Yosuke opted to walk you and Chie home. Chie said it was because he wanted to stop at Saki's house, since it was on the way back from your house, but he denied this. After dropping off Chie, Yosuke shifted slightly uncomfortably.

"Hey, uh, _, I'm sorry I said that earlier, ya know about the murderer lurking around. I know that your little cousin walks home from school and stuff so…" He started. 'Has that really been bothering him this whole time?' You thought looking over at him.

"It's okay I know you were just joking." You said giving him a reassuring smile. Yosuke let out a sigh.

"Ah, good, I was starting to think you were seriously mad at me." He said running a hand through his hair laughing relieved. You rolled your eyes.

"I wouldn't stay mad over something like that."

"Well that's a relief." The two of you laughed it off as you walked toward your house.

You spotted Dojima who seemed to have spotted you also. He raised a curious eyebrow as he approached the two of you.

"Dating already?" He accused sizing up Yosuke being the 'overbearing uncle' it seemed. "N-no no no no! I was j-just walking her home! Y-ya know c-cause of all t-that's happened and all. Hehehe…" Yosuke defended and you chuckled softly.

"Hello Ojisama." You greeted as if nothing had happened.

"Ojisama!?" Yosuke said. "T-this scary guy is your uncle?!" You laughed and nodded.

"Were you the one that broke her umbrella?" Dojima questioned.

"Yeah! How'd you know that, Ojisama?" You questioned.

"D-don't tell him!" Yosuke said.

"I saw it when you came in. I knew something had to have happened to you, because of the way it was broken. It was like someone tackled you to the ground or something." He said giving Yosuke dirty looks. Yosuke visibly cringed and looked away.

"I don't want any funny business, ya hear?" Dojima told Yosuke with a frown. "She may just be my niece, but she's still my family and I'm as protective of her as I am my own daughter. Keep that in mind boy." Dojima said. "Well anyway, I'm going to be a little late, but I should be home earlier tonight then yesterday. Just take care of Nanako for me, okay?" You nodded.

"Of course." You said smiling and he returned the smile before walking down the street once again.

"J-jeez… just met him and he already doesn't like me… And we're not even dating!" Yosuke said pouting. You laughed as the two of you proceeded down the street.

"Aw come on, it's not funny!" He defended. "I thought he was gonna kill me!"

"Na, he's just trying to make sure I'm safe is all." You said reaching your door step. "Well anyway, thanks for walking me home, Yosuke-kun. See you tomorrow." You said about to walk into your house.

"Oh and um _!" He said stopping you as you were about to walk inside.

"Yeah?" You said glancing over at him.

"I didn't mean it in a bad way when I said 'we're not even dating' ya know." He said.

"Um… I didn't really take in a bad way…" You said raising an eyebrow.

"Oh uh hehe that's good."

"What are you trying to say Yosuke-kun?" You questioned curiously.

"Oh, uh, um… Nothing! See you tomorrow." He said running off. You raised an eyebrow.

"Uh… okay…?" You said walking into the house. You removed you shoes and smiled.

You spotted Nanako smiling happily.

"Welcome back!" She called sitting down on the floor in front of the table. She gasped seeing the Junes bag in your hand.

"Y-you went to Junes?!" She asked excitedly standing up and running over to you. You chuckled and nodded.

"Yeah, sorry I didn't bring you this time, but a few of my friends were going, so I just went with them." You told her. "But I got you something! And I'm gonna cook dinner again tonight!"

"Really? Yay!" She replied happily and you handed her small teddy bear holding a box of chocolates, which she happily took.

"Thank you!" She said grinning.

"You're welcome," you told her as you prepared dinner for her and Dojima.

Just as you set the table and was about to sit down with Nanako, the door opened and Dojima walked inside.

"Mm, something smells good." He complimented with a weak, stressed smile. You smiled back preparing him a quick plate while he spoke to Nanako.

"Man, what a day…" He muttered sitting down at the table. "Did anything happen while I was out?"  
"No… you're late again…"

"I'm sorry… Been busy at work." Dojima replied as you placed his plate in front of him. "Can you put the news on for me?" You sat down in your usual seat as the three of you started to eat.

**"**Next, more details in the developing story on the incident in foggy Inaba.  
Announcer Mayumi Yamano's dead body was found hanging above a house in this isolated rural town. It is confirmed that Ms. Yamano had been involved in an affair with Taro Namatame, husband of enka singer Misuzu Hiiragi." The announcement continued. You sighed a bit tired of all of the follow ups about the love affair. It was blown even more out of proportion now that Ms. Yamano had passed away.

"The police plan to investigate this relationship and question any personnel involved with them." The announcer continued. "In addition, we now bring you an exclusive interview with the local student who found Ms. Yamano's body." Dojima sighed.

"An interview with the kid…? Where the hell did they find her?" He asked frowning.  
**"**What went through your mind when you saw it? Could you tell she was dead? Did you see her face?" The reporter questioned.  
"U-Umm…" The person started. It was definitely a female, but they blurred out her faced and changed her voice. She strangely looked very familiar though…?  
**"**Don't you think it's scary that someone was killed on a foggy day?" The reporter said.  
"Huh…? She was killed?" The girl asked.  
**"**Oh, errr… So did you see anyone suspicious around here?"  
"No, not really…"  
**"**We heard that you found it when you left school early. Did you have some personal business to take care of?"

"H-Huh? That's…" 'They're seriously getting off topic now…' You thought sighing softly as you started to eat the dinner you had prepared and ignoring the rest of the interview.

"Many storeowners are raising concerns about losing customers as a result of this…."

" Hmph. If they lose more customers, it'll be because you're making such a stink about it…"  
**"**It really is a bizarre case, isn't it? I mean, hanging someone upside down from an antenna…" A commenter said. "I'd have to say it's a warning or a sign from the culprit."  
**"**Yes, but so far, no one has come forward to take credit for the crime."  
"Loads of prank calls, though…" Dojima chimed in finishing his food and setting his plate aside as he sat down on the couch.  
**"**So the cause of death is still unknown? And they don't have a single suspect yet? Taxpayers' funds are going to a police force who can't even figure out if this is an accident or a homicide?" The commenter said. Dojima sighed irritably. 'Yeah, like being a detective is easy or something…' You thought frowning slightly.

"We'll be right back after these messages." The announcer said.

"At Junes, every day is Customer Appreciation Day. Come see for yourself, and get in touch with our products!" The commercial said, Nanako's commercial you liked to call it.  
"Every day's great at your Junes!"  
"Every day's great at your Junes!" Nanako sang. "Hey Dad… Can we go to Junes together sometime?" Dojima didn't seem to answer and you both turned your attention to him.  
"…No?" Nanako questioned with a small frown. You two sweat dropped hearing him snoring. Nanako sighed.

"Geez…" She grumbled. You chuckled taking everyone's plate in the sink and washing them before helping Nanako with a few things around the house before putting her to bed.

You approached Dojima who still slept on the couch and lightly shook him.

"Ojisama, wake up. You shouldn't sleep on the couch." You said.

"Mm… Chisato… why did you have to go…?" He asked quietly. You weren't sure whether he was having a nightmare or not. He had a smile on her face, but he spoke as if he'd lost someone precious. 'Who IS Chisato?' You thought to yourself. You shook your head and shook the man again he lightly woke up.

"Hm? Oh, _. What is it?" He asked sitting up properly.

"It's late Ojisama. You should get to bed." You advised. He chuckled at you.

"I could say the same for you." He said as he stood up. You nodded as the two of you turned the lights off and you headed to your own rooms.

You'd returned just in time to try that silly Midnight Channel thing that Chie demanded you try. It was raining and it was just about midnight as you stood in front of you TV gazing at her with mock curiosity. You smirked as nothing appeared.

"Silly Chie~, I stayed up for NOTHING." You said stretched and yawning before you practically choked on air as something DID appear on the TV! You gazed at the screen wondering if you were going insane. It looked like a woman, but the TV was so blurry you couldn't tell what or who it really was. Whatever it was looked as thought it was in some serious pain.

After a moment, the TV slowly faded and went back to normal. You remained standing in front of it was with an open mouth, surprised and confused. You blinked slightly hearing strange voices in your head.

_"I am thou. Thou art I. Thou art the one who opens the door."_ 'Oh my god I'm going crazy!' You screamed to yourself mentally. The voices slowly faded as you glanced back at the TV. Your breathing was slightly heavy as you carefully and cautiously attempted to poke your TV screen as if it were a foreign object. You gasped as your entire hand slipped into the TV, then your arm and your head! You frantically yanked at the side of the TV trying to pull yourself out of the TV and into the safety of your room. You pulled back roughly sending you falling into the table in front of the small couch in your room. You hit your head on it roughly as you groaned gripping the back of your head in pain.

"O-owie…" You said rubbing the tender area.

You heard footsteps rush to your room and you thought it was Dojima.

"Are you okay?" Came Nanako's gently voice.

"Y-yeah, I just fell off the bed." You lied.

"Okay… well… good night…" She said sleepily.

"Night!" You called taking one last look at the TV before covering it up with a blanket, still slightly freaked out. You crawled into bed still rubbing your aching head. You slowly drifted off to sleep wondering if anyone would believe you or if you were quickly losing your sanity.


	4. Chapter 4

**Date April 15:**

You woke up five minutes before your alarm clock and got out of bed. You wished you'd had gotten Yosuke or Chie's number, so you could talk to them about what happened the night before. You hoped you weren't going insane. When you saw that… whatever it was on the TV… the midnight channel… What was it? What did it mean?

You sighed deciding it wasn't something that you should think about right now. You got dress quickly choosing to discuss what had happened with the two when you got to school. You made your way down the steps to see Dojima making coffee and Nanako preparing breakfast.

"Good morning," Nanako greeted offering a small smile.

"Good morning." You replied.

"I got you a new umbrella. Don't let that boy anywhere near it." Dojima said handing it to you. You chuckled and nodded taking the umbrella from him and placing it with you uniform jacket.

"Well, I'm off." Dojima said practically inhaling his breakfast, grabbing the lunch Nanako prepared for him from last night's dinner, before making his way outside.

"Rain again, huh?" You said pouting as you gazed out of the window. Nanako placed two plates down at the table and sat down.

"It's been raining a lot." She said. "I don't like the rain."

"Me either!" You said sitting down at the table to eat with her. Your head was still sore from the fall yesterday, which was sign that you weren't just imagining the entire thing. You couldn't decide whether it was a good sign or not…

After eating breakfast with Nanako, she gave you your lunch, a lot as usual, and you grabbed your jacket and new umbrella before making your way outside. You walked part of the way with Nanako talking about what you'd have for dinner tonight. When the two of you split up to go down separate roads to school, Yosuke ran after you.

"Hey, hey, move over!" He said. In a desperate attempt to save your poor umbrella you took off running.

"Seriously, _? I don't even have my bike today!" Yosuke called chasing after you. You stopped abruptly.

"Really-" You started before being knocked to the ground again.

"Dammit Yosuke-kun!" You said glaring up at him once again hover over top of you. He chuckled.

"Sorry," he said getting up and hoisting you up with him. He brushed himself off and you did the same.

"I forgot my umbrella today and my bike broke yesterday…" He said sighing. You examined your umbrella, happy that it wasn't broken. You put it over the two of you with a small smile.

"Well I shared with you two days in a row, so I don't mind sharing with you today." You said.

"So uh… did you see… 'it' last night?" Yosuke asked. You nodded knowing exactly what it was he was talking about.

"Yeah… but I couldn't exactly make out what it was."

"Yeah, I thought I saw a girl, but it was way too blurry to tell."

"Let's ask Chie what she saw when we get to homeroom." You suggested and he nodded.

Once in homeroom, you spotted Yukiko sitting in her usual seat. Chie was no where to be found and you were confused. It wasn't like her to be late. Yosuke yapped along with someone as he waited for the bell to ring. Chie quickly rushed into the classroom just as the bell rung. She flopped down in the seat next to you and huffed.

"Man… I got up so late this morning!" She said out of breath. You chuckled.

"I was wondering where you were. I would've been lonely if you hadn't come to school." You said jokingly.

"Na, I wouldn't leave you here alone with Yosuke!" She said.

"Thanks, I appreciate it."

"Hey! I heard that!" Yosuke said and the two of you laughed happily.

"Alright, shut your traps! I'm taking role and I damn well expect you to respond in an orderly manner!" Morooka said returning your attention to him.

It wasn't long before your classes progressed and you had the pleasure of meeting a very interestingly new teacher.

"Hello everyone, my name is Kimiko Sofue, and I don't know how much you know about world history, but I'm an expert!" She exclaimed. She wore an unusual headdress, which you assumed you'd only ever be able to see in the sticks.

"First, a little about me. I love to use my dowser to look for lost items, and there's nothing quite like a romance. In fact, world history is a magnificent romance. History is like a river; it was born in the past and flows ever forward. I hope we can all enjoy the profundity of history together. Hohoho.  
And since this is my first lecture, I'll start with an easy question.  
Our transferee, Ms. _, please stand up. When did A.D.-in other words, Anno Domini-begin?" She asked you curiously. You stood up as requested and smiled. You knew this one, it was easy!

"That's when Jesus was born~" you exclaimed.

"Ah, you seem to understand this well. And does anyone know what B.C. stands for? Oh, I'll just tell you. Before Christ, or the years before Christ was born. This is, of course, the way we count our years today, but it wasn't adopted in Western Europe until the 15th century. Hohoho, it was around that time that there were many religious wars and power shifts occurring. Anyhow, the world's beliefs have been in an ever-flowing tide since humanity began to emphasize religion. Most holidays are related to religion, you know. If you do some research, you may find some interesting facts. But regardless of the culture or the tradition, the tide decides who will survive in the present and the future. And those survivors ensure that their will is passed down to the next generation… But now it's time to start from the beginning. Let's take a look at the origin of civilization…" Ms. Sofue started and you smiled proudly as you sat back down listening to the lecture. You were rather smart and got most of the answers correct, but it always felt nice to be praised.

Lunchtime quickly came and you happy to eat lunch with you typical group of friends. Chie had suggested that you all eat in the classroom as you did the day before 1. Because it was quieter. 2. Because she was mad that Yosuke was hogging you, to which he denied. You didn't mind as you took out you lunch, after warming it up in the faculty office microwave. Yosuke had purposely forgotten his lunch, so he'd be able to share with you.

"Man! You should be a chef! This is awesome!" He said. He brought his own fork and was happily eating your lunch. You groaned, but didn't mind.

"Really? I wanna try some!" Chie said snatching the bowl from Yosuke taking a big bite from your food.

"Oh hoho! This is so good!" She said taking a few more bites.

"Hey! Give it back we were eating that!" Yosuke said leaning over the desk trying to grab it. Yukiko continued to eat as if it was nothing out of the ordinary.

"You can have some of mine, _." She said offering you her food assuming Chie would eat yours or Yosuke would make her spill it all over the place.

"Thanks Yukiko," you said tasting it. "Wow this is really good."

"Thank you, our chef's at the inn prepare my lunches usually." She said. "It's always too much for me, so I don't mind sharing."

"Oh yeah? That's really nice of them." You said. She nodded smiling a bit gratefully.

"Yeah, everyone is so kind to me…" She said smiling a bit. You smiled back. The two of you were surprisingly easily able to tune out Yosuke and Chie's fighting over your lunch as you and Yukiko spoke quietly and shared her boxed lunch.

"So are you settling in well here?" Yukiko asked you and you nodded.

"Yeah, I think I know my way around for the most part, thanks to you and Chie helping me out the other day."

"Thanks great, I'm not sure I'd fair well in any other place. I've never been anywhere but Inaba, so I'd be really nervous to go somewhere else." She admitted and you chuckled.

"I'd like to be able to stay in a quiet place like this all my life." You told her and she nodded.

"I've always been interested in living in the city. It sounds so exciting!" She said mildly interested.

"Well, maybe we should go on a day we have a long holiday?" You suggested. "It could be like a sleepover! We can stay in my old house for a while. It'll be just us, since my parents are overseas, but I'll show you around the city and we can spend some time shopping. It'll be fun!" You said and she smiled.

"I'd like that!" She said and the two of you shared a pleased smile.

After lunch ended, school went by rather quickly. Everyone around was still gossiping about the incident, how the body looked and who discovered it.

_"What's up with the body being hung upside down? That's so creepy!"_

_"Is it supposed to be like, mimicking an execution? It's messed up…"_

_"My senpai told me it was a third-year named Saki who found the body."_

You were finishing some notes when Yosuke and Chie approached your desk.

"Yosuke, did you hear the rumor?" Chie started. "Saki-senpai's supposedly the one who discovered that body."

"I wonder if that's why she looked so down… She doesn't seem to be at school today either." Yosuke replied. 'So I was right, she was the one on the news yesterday.' You thought.  
"Huh? Hey Yukiko, are you helping out at the inn today too?" Chie asked curiously.  
"Things are really out of hand right now… I'm sorry." Yukiko said before making her way out of the classroom.

"Is it just me or does Yukiko-san seem really stressed out lately?" Yosuke mentioned.

"I guess they're running her ragged…" Chie said. "By the way, did you see… it… last night?"  
"Huh…? Uh, well… What about you?" Yosuke said slightly nervous to admit that he DID see someone.  
"I did! I seriously saw a girl! But… my soulmate's a girl? What's that supposed to mean? I couldn't quite tell who it was, but it was a girl for sure…" 'Hm… I saw a girl too…' You thought.

"Her hair was long, about shoulder length. She was wearing our school uniform and…" Chie continued racking her brain for what said person looked like. 'It was THAT clear for her? I could hardly see someone. I didn't even know what they were wearing. It just looked like a girl with brown hair…' You thought.

"Hey… I think that's the same person I saw. I couldn't make out that much detail, though. The image I saw was much blurrier…" Yosuke commented.  
"Wait, so you saw it too!? And we saw the same girl…? Does that mean… we have the same soulmate?" Chie said. I sweat dropped. 'I really don't think it shows your 'soulmate' on the TV…' You thought.

"How should I know?" Yosuke said thinking that was complete irrelevant. "How 'bout you? Did you see it?" The attention was brought to you as you nodded.

"Well…" You started explaining everything that had transpired that night to the two as they shared a glance.

"It sounds like we all saw the same person…" Yosuke said. "But weird voices aside, what was that about getting sucked into your TV…? Were you that tired last night? You must've just fallen asleep in front of your TV."

"But-" You started. 'It didn't happen to them? Then…' You thought feeling more confused now then ever.  
"That'd be one interesting dream, though." Chie added.

"Heh, yeah, you've been having a lot of those, huh?" Yosuke said nudging you.  
"I like the part where you got stuck 'cause your TV was too small. That's pretty realistic. Well, if it had been bigger, the-"Chie started. 'They're seriously making fun of me!' You thought pouting.

"Ohhh, that reminds me, my family's been talking about buying a bigger TV!" Chie said changing the subject. You were happy they had stopped mocking you, but were still confused; very confused.

"Oh yeah? Well, flatscreen TVs are definitely in these days." Yosuke commented. "Wanna go check 'em out on the way back? We're beefing up our electronics department this month."  
"Oh, definitely! My parents don't know anything about electronics, and I've gotta see my kung-fu movies on the big screen! Hwa-taaaa!" Chie said attempted to do a kung-fu move. You and Yosuke sweat dropped.  
"We've got some pretty big ones in stock. I bet they'd be big enough for you to fit into, hehe." He said smirking down at you.

"But I did! You guys suck!" You said pouting as they laughed at you on your way to Junes.

"What should I make for dinner tonight…?" You said as you walked inside Junes with the group.

"I think it should have steak in it!" Chie exclaimed. "It'll make a great lunch!"

"Forget steak, just make sure it doesn't have tofu, I can't eat tofu." Yosuke said. You frowned.

"I'm not cooking for you! I meant for Nanako and Ojisama!" You said frowning. The two pouted and you sweat dropped.

You smiled slightly as you arrived at the entertainment section of Junes, so Chie could look at the TV's for her family.

"Wooooow! This is HUGE! And… holy crap it's expensive! Who buys something like this?"

"I dunno… Rich folks?" Yosuke said. "Honestly, not many people shop for TVs here. That's why we don't have clerks around."  
"Huh… Not worth trying then, I guess. Well, at least looking's free." You shrugged and the two glanced at you. You raised a curious eyebrow as they approached the TV. You frowned, 'they're picking on me again!' You thought. They pressed their hands up to the TV touching the screen.

"…Nope, can't get in. Figures." Yosuke said smirking. 'Jerk…' You thought.

"Haha, this proves it. It was all just a dream." Chie added. 'Whatever…' You thought.  
"Besides, these flat-screen TVs are so thin, you'd just end up on the other side…  
Argh, what am I saying!?" Yosuke said. "So Chie, what kind of TVs are you guys in the market for?"

"O-Oh, they said they wanted one that's cheap. You got any suggestions?" Chie asked. The two wandered over to the smaller TV's a little away from you.

You glared at the TV wondering why the hell you couldn't get through.

"Well, miss, might I suggest this one over here? It's the new model just released this spring." Yosuke said

"Wha-that's not cheap at all! There's way too many zeroes!" Chie said frowning.  
"I should've asked what you meant by "cheap" right off the bat."  
"You've got connections, right? C'mon, hook me up!"  
"You know I can't do that…" Yosuke said as if people had asked him that all the time. "Hey, how about this one over here? It's a display unit and it's a little old, but…" You rolled your eyes looking back at the TV. 'Maybe it was just a dream…' You thought. 'Well this TV is pretty big… maybe I really could…' You thought carefully reaching out and touching TV screen. Your hand went right inside and you gasped.

"I knew it was real!" You said.

"Oh, yeah, _ what kind of TV do you-" Yosuke said.

"Huh? Something wrong, Yosuke?" Chie asked curiously.  
"I-Is her arm… in the TV…?" Yosuke said.  
"W-Whoa… Uhhh… Is that some kinda… new model? L-Like with a new function?" Chie said disbelievingly.  
"Hell no!" Yosuke said as the two ran over to you.

"I told you! I told both of you! It was real!" You said huffing.

"Y-you gotta be kidding me! I-Is you hand really in the TV!" Chie said surprised.

"Oh man… This is for real… That's some magic trick, man!" Yosuke said. "So how's it work, huh!? What's the magician's secret!?" You rolled your eyes and wondered what exactly you could see inside the TV if you looked. You cautious stuck you head inside, but saw nothing but white.

"H-hey, hey! Don't do that! What're you doing?!" Yosuke said.

"Oh my God!" Chie said.

"It looks so empty inside here… I don't see anything!" You yelled back at them.

"Wh-What do you mean, "inside"!?" Yosuke said frantically.  
"Wh-What do you mean, "empty"!?" Chie exclaimed.

"It's really spacious!" You said.

"Wh-What do you mean, "spacious"!?" Yosuke asked.

"I mean, what's going on!?" Chie asked. You leaned a bit more inside gazing around trying to see if you could see anything.  
"Holy crap… I-I think this is all too much for my bladder!" Yosuke exclaimed.

"What the- are you gonna pee your pants?!" Chie asked.

"I've been holding it in all day! I-I haven't had a chance to go… Aaarrgh! Can't… hold it… anymore…!" Yosuke said as you heard him run off. You rolled your eyes. "Shit! Customers! They're coming!"  
"What!? But we've got a girl half stuck in a TV here!" Chie said "Wh-What're we gonna do!?" You rolled you eyes hearing them run around.

"Calm down, I'm just gonna get ou-" You said as you attempted to step away from the TV getting part of the way out before you were slammed into and falling deep into the TV. The three of you screamed frantically as you feel toward wherever. The three of you hit the ground roughly and you groaned.

"O-ow…" You grumbled.

"Ow, sheesh, that hurt…" Chie said.

"Man, I leaned right on my wallet." Yosuke said rubbing his lower back, before getting up.

"Where are we?" Chie asked curiously as she stood up. "I mean… we ARE alive, right?"

"Ugh… Is everyone okay?" I asked standing up properly.

"I think my butt's cracked now…" Yosuke said rubbing it.  
"Of course it is!" You and Chie said rolling your eyes.  
"Whoa!" Yosuke said.  
"Wh-What now!? Did you wet your pants!?" Chie asked worriedly.

"Ew…" You muttered.  
"No, stupid! Look around!" Yosuke said frowning.

"What is it now?" Chie asked.

The three of you looked around for a short moment. It was so foggy you couldn't see anything, but it kinda reminded you of a studio.

"Is this… a studio?" Chie asked. "All this fog… Or is it smoke? There's no place like this in Inaba, is there…?"  
"Hell no… But man… this place is huge…" Yosuke said and you nodded.  
"What're we gonna do…?" Chie asked.

"Let's try to find a way outta here…" You suggested.

"G-Good plan! Look, we need to get home and-!" Chie started and you Yosuke raised an eyebrow. "H-Huh…? Wait a minute… Which way did we come in from?  
I don't see a way in… or out!"

"What? That can't be right! H-How could that be!?" Yosuke said panicking.  
"I don't know! Don't ask me!" Chie said. "I can't take this anymore! I wanna go home!"  
"Okay… so how!?" Yosuke demanded.

"Just calm down!" You said frowning. "We got in, so we can get out!"

"That's true, but…" Chie said.  
"If there's no exit, we're trapped, so let's cross our fingers and look around." Yosuke said. You nodded and the three of you set out to find an exit.

You sighed feeling as though you'd been walking for hours. You couldn't believe you were so tired after just walking a little bit. It was so foggy you could hardly see the two walking beside you.

"What is this place? It feels different from where we were before…" Chie said curiously.

"It looks like we're in some kinda building, but… Damn, this fog's so thick, I can hardly see." Yosuke said and you nodded.  
"Are you sure we're not wandering further away?" Chie wondered.  
"I can't be positive, but we've gotta trust our instinct a little." Yosuke said.  
"I know, but…" Chie grumbled. You and Yosuke ignored her as you walked toward the first door you saw. Yosuke held the door open for you, you were unsure if it was because he was being a gentleman, or because he wasn't sure what was in there and he wanted you to go first.

"Wow, what is this place?" You asked looking the odd-looking room.

"Hey is it just me or is the fog lighter here?" Yosuke asked. Yosuke walked further inside and checked his phone.

"No service. What a surprise…" He grumbled.  
"Can't you guys slow down a little? It's hard enough to see where you're going…  
Huh? What the…!?" Chie asked looking around. "It's a dead end! There's no exit!"

"Relax, we'll just turn around and look another way…" you said sighing.  
"It keep getting creepier and creepier the further we go… Aargh! I can't hold it any longer…" Yosuke said fidgeting. You raised an eyebrow and Chie groaned irritably. "My bladder's gonna explode…!" You sweat dropped. Yosuke ran over to the other side of the room facing the way.

"Seriously, Yosuke-kun!" You said covering you eyes.  
"Yosuke!? What're you doing!?" Chie said.

"I gotta let it out before I piss my pants!" He said.

"You're going here!? Oh, you have got to be kidding…" Chie said.  
"T-Turn around! I can't go if everyone's watching!" Yosuke said and you quickly turned away.

"That's so gross! Seriously, why couldn't you have gone after school?!" You said.

"Aaaaargh… I can't do it! It's all your fault if my bladder bursts!" Yosuke said.  
"Like I care…" Chie said rolling her eyes. "Anyways… what's with this room? Check out these posters… Their faces are all cut out… Somebody must really hate this person…" You and Yosuke looked around the room to see the strange posters. It looked strangely familiar, but you couldn't quite tell who it was.

"Dude… this chair and rope…. That kinda arrangements is never good…" Yosuke said and you and Chie glanced over at the chair. "It's tied in a noose… Is this a scarf?"  
"C'mon… Let's go back to where we came from, and look somewhere else for an exit…"

"Hey… I think I've seen that poster before…" Yosuke pointed out.

"Seriously, it looks so familiar…" You grumbled.  
"Who CARES!? Let's go! I am sick of this place!" Chie said before sighing, "And I'm not feeling so good…"  
"Now that you mention it, me too…" Yosuke said. You did feel a bit sluggish and you were very tired.

"Alright, let's go back. I'm seriously starting to feel sick…" Yosuke said and you nodded as the three of you progressed back to the strange studio you arrived at when you had fallen in.

"Whew we finally made it back…" Chie grumbled.

"Yeah, but what do we do now…?" You said. "How do we get out…"

"W-wait, what's that?!" Chie called pointing to the way you'd just come. You and Yosuke peered out before your eyes widened.

"Th-there's something over there!" Yosuke said.

"Something else lives here?!" You asked disbelievingly. A strange creature approached you and you raised an eyebrow.

"W-what is that thing? A monkey..? A bear…?" Chie questioned.

"What in the world!" Yosuke said.

"That's what I wanna know! Who are you guys…?" It asked. Chie gasped.

"I-It talked!" Chie asked. "W-what you wanna fight?!" She was slightly fearful of the strange animal. The strange creature cowered.

"D-don't yell at me…" He said pouting. You felt bad for the poor thing.

"What is this place…?" You asked it curiously.

"This place is what it is. It doesn't have a name. It's where I live." The things said.  
"You… live here?" Yosuke said.  
"If I was you guys, I'd hurry back to the other side. Someone's been throwing people in here. It's a big headache." It said.  
"Huh? Throwing people in? What're you talking about?" Yosuke asked.  
"I dunno who's doing it! I just want them to think before they go doing things like that!" It said.

"Heyy! What's you problem? What gives YOU the right to yell at us?" Chie demanded. "What ARE you!? Where are we!? What the heck's going on here!?" The creature ran for the shelter behind you cowering. It clutched to your waist and you sweat dropped.

"I already told you…" It said. "A-Anyways, you should hurry back."

"We don't know how…" You said.  
"What it comes down to is, you want us to get outta here, right?" Yosuke said. "Well, so do we! We just don't know how, dammit!"  
"Urrrrgh! That's why I'm saying I'll let you out!" It said.

"Like I keep saying, we don't know where the frickin' exit-" Yosuke started. "Wait… What?!" The creature tapped his foot and a tower of televisions sudden appeared in front of you.

"What the hell!?" Yosuke exclaimed.  
"Wh-Where did these TVs come from!?" Chie asked.  
"Okay, now go, go, get outta here! I'm a busy bear!" The bear said.

"What's going on now!? Whoa! Hey, what're you doing!?" Chie exclaimed as the strange creature started pushing the three of you and into the televisions.  
"S-Stop pushing!" Yosuke said. You were tossed into the televisions and hit the ground hard again.

You sighed, happy to hear the music that played in Junes every time you visited.

"We're back!" You said.

"Attention, shoppers. Our daily limited-time sale will now begin at the side dish area on the first floor. Why not try the delicious, fresh produce Junes picked for you this morning as your side dish for dinner tonight? All ages are invited to take advantage of this incredible bargain!" The announcement said.  
"Crap, it's already that late!?" Yosuke said surprised.

"No! It's way too late for me to buy food now. It's already almost dinner time." You said irritably.  
"Looks like we were in there for quite awhile…" Chie said sighing.  
"That's right… Now I remember where I saw that poster before… Look over there! That's the poster we saw!" Yosuke said pointing it out.  
"What's up now?" Chie asked as you followed his gaze over to the poster in the room.

"N-no way!" You said.

"Hey, you're right. I couldn't tell before, without the face, but it's Misuzu Hiiragi." Chie said. "She's been all over the news lately. Something about… her husband having an affair with that announcer lady who died the other day."

"What's that supposed to mean, then…?" You said.  
"Hey, so does that mean…? That weird room we saw… Could it be related to that Yamano lady's death…? Now that I think about it… there was that creepy noose hanging from the ceiling…" Yosuke said. "Yaaargh, stop! No more! We gotta stop talking about this. I'm gonna wipe what happened today from my brain. I don't think my poor heart can take anymore."  
"I'm feeling a chill too…" Chie said. "Let's go home… I wanna lie down and rest."

"I agree… I'll see you guys tomorrow…" You said.

You walked home by yourself, still feeling tired and sluggish. It wasn't a long walk, thank god. When you walked inside, Dojima and Nanako were already eating.

"Hey welcome home…" Dojima greeted.

"Good afternoon. I'm sorry I'm late…" You said sitting down in front of the table. "H-Hmm… Well, I doubt you'd know…But have you heard anything about a student named Saki Konishi?" Dojima asked.

"Yosuke-kun said she wasn't at school today. I don't know much about her, but she seemed rather run down…" You said.

"Oh. I see… To be honest… we got a call from her family. She's disappeared. We've got people looking for her, but she hasn't been found yet…" He said before he sighed. "Work just keeps piling up…" He looked so exhausted, as always.

"And now, more on the case still casting a shadow over the foggy town of Inaba." The announcer said. "Not long ago, television announcer Mayumi Yamano was found dead in the small town. Up until now, her whereabouts prior to her death had been the police investigation has found that she had been staying in the region's famous Amagi Inn. She had apparently been staying there alone. Perhaps taking a vacation to recover from her ordeal?"

"Oh yes, the Amagi Inn! Their hot springs are first-rate. The manager's teenage daughter also works there, and it's rumored that she'll take over the inn this spring. If that happens, she'll be one of the youngest managers on record! I should book another trip there!" A commenter said

"Uhh… I-I see… Moving along, it's time for the weather report. The rain has begun to subside. From now until morning, heavy fog warnings will be in effect in the Inaba region. Visibility will be severely reduced, so please be careful if you plan on driving in the area…" The announcer continued.

You sighed feeling even more exhausted now then you did before, plus you were feeling even more sick.

"Is the ramen ready yet?" Nanako asked.

"Give it some more time…" Dojima said. You sneezed, feeling a slight chill. Were you catching a cold?

"Are you sick? You're probably still adjusting to the new environment. Nanako, could you get her some cold medicine? You should get to bed right after you take it." Nanako nodded and ran off to get you some medicine.

"Thank you so much," you said happily taking it before going up to your room.

"Good night…" You said sighing. You were exhausted and didn't want to even think about what transpired today. You simply got into bed and fell asleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**Date: April 16**

You woke up late today, forgetting to set your alarm, because you were so tired the night before. You thought perhaps you were catching a cold, but you felt fine today. You raised an eyebrow hearing sirens blaring outside. 'Did… something happen?' You wondered, but didn't have time to think about it. You rushed to get ready and soon made your way down the steps. Dojima rushed out of the house without as much as a good morning or goodbye. He seemed to be in quite the rush.

"He got another call, so he left…" Nanako said. You frowned slightly. 'Does it have something to do with the sirens? I have a bad feeling about this…' You thought. You glanced over at Nanako, who looked very worried and you plastered on a perfect fake smile.

"Don't worry Nanako, I'm sure there's nothing to worry about." You assured her. She smiled weakly attempting to believe you. She handed you a small tin of food with a shy smile.

"S-since you made dinner before… I um… I tried to make you some lunch." She said blushing brightly. You happily took the food offered to you and smiled.

"Thank you so much, I'm sure it'll taste delicious." You said placing the food in your bag and heading toward the door. Nanako smiled happily running after you.

"I'm sorry that I wasn't able to make dinner last night. I'll definitely make something tonight!" You reassured her with a smile. She shook her head.

"It's okay. I like ramen and dad said he didn't want to put too much pressure on you, since you just got here." She said. You smiled slightly, Dojima was so kind, even if he tried to seem like he wasn't.

"It's no trouble. I like to cook." You said and she smiled.

"Really? Okay!" She said happily. You chuckled waving to her as she ran off toward her school and you continued on the way to yours. You paused spotting two girls gossiping loudly.

"When I looked, I saw three police cars zooming by."

**"**You live by the police station, don't you? Did you hear anything?"

**"**I heard yelling, but nothing more. Total disappointment."

"Geez, you need to pay more attention to stuff like that. How else are we supposed to get the juicy stories?"

"So something did happen…" You muttered making your way toward school. You raised an eyebrow passing the trashcans you now called the 'Yosuke' trashcans and the young male didn't greet you as he usually would. 'Hm… I wonder where Yosuke-kun is? Is he late?" You wondered as you walked inside of the school gate.

You blinked as you walked into class and noticed Yukiko wasn't there and Yosuke seemed down. Chie greeted you happily though, waving and beckoning for you to come sit down. When you sat down Yosuke flashed you a weak smile before going back to sulking. You raised an eyebrow as Chie chatted away.

"Where's Yukiko?" You asked interrupting her story about some kung-fu movie she watched last night.

"Yukiko? Oh! She said she had to work at the inn this morning, but she'll be back by lunchtime."

"I see… Does this… happen often?"

"Mm… not really, but sometimes the inn gets a lot of customers and she has to help out. No big deal, haha." Chie said before going back to talking about her kung-fu movie and doing weird moves attempting to imitate them. 'Hm… Saki-senpai's missing, Ojisama left in a hurry this morning, Yukiko isn't here and Yosuke-kun is depressed… what the hell is going on?' You wondered as you tuned out Chie's blabbering.

Lunchtime came by slowly as you sat a bit restless trying to figure out all that was on your mind. Yukiko still hadn't arrived and Yosuke left the classroom so quickly you didn't have time to ask him if he was alright. You huffed taking out your lunch that Nanako gave you with a gentle smile; at least you had that to look forward to.

You opened it up and frowned slightly. It smelled awful! You were unsure if you should really eat it or not… 'I know she tried but…' You thought biting your lip. You glanced down at a small piece of paper hidden inside of the tin. You used your fork to take it out and opened it. Some money fell out of it and you raised an eyebrow as you read it.

_"_,_

_I'm 100% sure that this is inedible, here's some money to get yourself something to eat. Be sure to throw it away, so Nanako thinks you ate it. –Dojima."_

You burst into a fit of laughter, the first time you'd laughed today. You felt as though, you really needed this. It brightened your day some and dampened your worries. Chie, who'd been sitting next to you grinned.

"Oh hoho, so you DID make dinner last night, huh?" She asked.

"No uh-" You started before remembering her stealing your lunch yesterday and smirked.

"Yeah, here we can trade." You said smirking. Chie smiled happily.

"Really?! You're the best, _!" She said taking it and handing you hers. She happily took a big bite before her face turned a dark color and she froze. You blinked feeling slightly worried.

"C-Chie…?" You asked. "A-are you okay?"

"W-w-w-what the hell is this!?" She demanded spitting it all over her desk. You chuckled nervously.

"N-Nanako made it for me, but…" You started.

"It's awful!" She said. "Oh my god!" You sweat dropped.

"It can't be THAT bad!" You defended.

"Taste it! Taste it right now!" She demanded shoving it in your face.

"But-"

" ." She said shoving it in your face giving you a very serious expression. You had no choice. You sighed placing your fork inside of the tin and taking a small bite of the food. Some parts were uncooked and you weren't sure if you were eating octopus or steak. The flavors seemed to run together and it was rather spicy. You tried to keep it down, but couldn't. You spit it all over your table and gasped for air.

"O-Oh my god!" You said coughing.

"See, see!" Chie said frowning.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" She said. "I didn't think it was THIS bad! I was just trying to get you back for eating all of my lunch yesterday."

"Well that's one hell of a way to get back at me! Trying to kill me, huh?!" She demanded.

"I said I was sorry!"

The two of you shared a glance before you busted out laughing.

"Come on, let's go get something from the cafeteria before it closes." She said noticing that you'd spit your food right into her lunch. You nodded. "My treat, since your lunch was so important to you that you tried to murder me." You snickered rolling your eyes as you threw away the food you had and placed the tin back in your bag.

"I wasn't trying to kill you… just knock you out of a while." You joked.

"So you admit it!" She said as the two of you laughed on your way to the cafeteria.

Chie bought lunch for herself and you and was about to go sit down and eat when you spotted Yosuke sitting alone.

"Huh… I wonder what's wrong with him…" You said. "He's been down like that all day."

"Really? Let's go find out!" She said walking over to the table with him. He noticeably cringed seeing the two of you approach him as he looked away. You were about to say something when Chie's phone rang.

"One sec, it's Yukiko, I'll be right back." She said placing her food down and scurrying off. Yosuke tried to get up also and you effectively gripped his sleeve.

"Yosuke-kun," you said calmly. "What's the matter."

"I don't want to talk about it. Let me go…" He said, but he didn't pull away from you. His face was turned away from you, but you could tell he WANTED someone to talk to.

"Stop putting up a front. Just tell me what happened." You demanded.

"It's none of you business, okay?!" He said pulling away from you. "Just… leave me alone." He looked at your for a moment, attempting to read your calm expression. You weren't offended by the way he pulled away from you, just worried and curious. What could have happened that would upset your goofy friend so much?

"Then don't talk about it. Just sit and have lunch with me." You said sitting down beside the seat he had been sitting at a moment ago. "You can share my food with me. I'd give you some of the lunch Nanako gave me, but I'm not that cruel… well… apparently I am, since I gave some to Chie, but… oh you get the point!" Yosuke blinked at your casual attitude and he chuckled weakly.

"Man, _, you're so weird." He said sitting down beside you.

"It's my best quality," you joked and he smirked.

"Got that right."

"What's that supposed to mean?" The two of you laughed as you shared the lunch Chie had bought you.

"Ohhhh what do we have here~?" Chie asked coming back to the table. "Bonding are we~?"

"Wha- bonding? What the hell are you talking about?" Yosuke asked rolling his eyes at the girl, but the light blush on his cheeks was obvious.

"What did Yukiko say?" You asked changing the subject.

"Oh, she said she'd be back this afternoon. She should be here for out last few classes." Chie said and you nodded.

Yosuke didn't eat much, nor did he really talk much. He definitely wasn't he usual self, but he was more relaxed now and you were happy to see that. After lunch, the three of you returned to your classroom continuing through the next two classes before being called to an assembly.

"An assembly? I wonder what it's about…?" You said as your friend fidgeting beside you uneasily.

"Hm? What's up?" You asked curiously as you approached the stage to listen to the assembly. Yosuke looked away from you and you raised an eyebrow.

"Where's Yukiko? She said she'd be here by now!" Chie said frowning.

"Is she still working at the inn?" You questioned and she sighed.

"Maybe… but she usually texts me and at least let's me know what's up… Is it really that busy?"

"Well, she has left immediately after school a few days in a row…"

"Yeah, I guess so…" You blinked at the uneasiness in the group and was starting to feel a bit worried. You let silence take over among the group and you listened to the gossiping around, hoping to get an idea of anything that may help you better understand something.

_"Hey, did you see it last night?" _

_"Of course not… What, is that rumor for real?"_

**_"_**_I dunno, but it seems like a lot of people have seen it."_

You sighed. 'Nothing useful, like I should've even thought there'd be. Rumors are so ridiculous.' You thought frowning.

"Everyone, please settle down. The school assembly is about to begin.  
First, the Principal has something to say." Ms. Sofue said as the room became quiet once again.

"I… regret to say that I have a terrible announcement for all of you." The principle started. "One of your third year students, Ms. Saki Konishi of class three…" The principle paused as if he were bracing himself for what was to come. Yosuke seemed to do the same. "Has passed away…"

"Passed away!" Chie said

"Oh, Yosuke-kun…" You started glancing over at him. He sighed looking away.

"Ms. Konishi was found deceased early this morning… The reasons behind her passing are currently under investigation by the police. If they ask you for your cooperation, I urge you as students of this school to provide only the facts. All right, please quiet down… I have been assured by the faculty that there's been no evidence that bullying was involved in the incident. So mind what you say, not only to the police but to anyone who asks…" The principle continued.

"Found dead…? How could this happen…?" Chie asked worriedly and curiously. You tuned out the rest of the announcement as your tried to piece everything together. 'So… Ojisama left the house early to investigate Saki Konishi's death, her death is the reason why Yosuke-kun was so upset… Poor Yosuke-kun… he cared for her so much… A-anyway! That still doesn't explain why Yukiko isn't in school… Wasn't Ms. Yamano staying at her inn before she died… Ack! There's no way Yukiko could be capable of that! What am I thinking! But there IS someone out there killing people… Maybe I should pick Nanako up from her school today… I'm starting to feel worried. I mean, in this town everyone knows everyone, I could take to the killer daily and not know it! It's not like in the city…' You thought feeling worry in the pit of your stomach and perhaps a bit of fear also.

Before you knew it, the assembly had ended and you were being ushered off back to class. You were given the rest of the day off after hearing about the mind-numbing news of Saki's passing. Yosuke had left early during the assembly and you and Chie walked off toward your shoe boxes overhearing a few girls gossiping. 'I've had enough of gossip for one day…' You thought as you listened.

_"She died the same way as that announcer, right? That's so creepy!" _

_"Well, last time, it was from an antenna, but this time she was hanging from a telephone pole. It's gotta be a serial murder case…"_

**_"_**_Someone said the cause of death was some unknown poison."_

**_"_**_Unknown…? C'mon, this isn't some sci-fi drama. Oh, by the way, did you hear? Someone saw a girl that looked like Saki on that Midnight Channel thingy. They said she totally looked like she was in pain. Isn't that scary?"_

_"Haha, sounds like someone had a nightmare. The media's been broadcasting their interviews with her nonstop, so maybe they just had Saki on the brain."_

'The Midnight Channel, huh? Come to think of it… The way Chie described her did kinda fit Saki-senpai's appearance…' You thought.

"Sheesh, it's easy to pass around theories if you're not personally involved." Chie said.

"Seriously…" You replied.

"Hey… Did you guys check out the TV last night?" Yosuke asked approaching us. I could see the tear stains on his cheeks, he'd been crying and recently.  
"Yosuke! Not you too!"

"Just listen for a sec! Something kept bothering me, so… I watched it again, and… I think the girl on the screen… was Saki-senpai. There's no mistaking it… Senpai looked like… she was writing in pain… And then… she disappeared from the screen." He said.

"Writing in pain…?"

"What…?" Chie commented.

"You heard Senpai's body was found in a similar situation as that announcer's, right…? Well, remember that guy you told us about? How he was all excited that his soulmate was the announcer?" Yosuke said.

"W-wait, you don't think..." You started. He nodded.

"Maybe… just maybe…" Yosuke started. "Ms. Yamano might've been on that Midnight Channel before she died, too."

"What's that supposed to mean…? Hold on… Are you saying… People who appear on that TV… die…?" Chie said.

"I can't say for sure. But something tells me… I just can't dismiss it as coincidence." Yosuke replied. "Plus, remember what that bear thing said? How that place was dangerous, and we should leave before the fog clears…? It also said that someone's been throwing people in there. And that room with the posters on the wall… It has to have something to do with the announcer's death. I mean… don't you think there's some kind of connection there? Couldn't that world in the TV have something to do with Senpai and the announcer's death!? Well…? What do you think…?" Yosuke said looking over at you, practically begging you with his eyes to agree or at least say something. You bit your lips. 'Could it really be possible… I mean, we DID go through a damn TV and I didn't think that was possible… But if he's right… then what? What are we supposed to do?' You thought.

"Maybe, but if you're right… what the hell are we supposed to do?" You replied.

"So it's not just me, huh? If there is a connection, then it's a good bet that the two of them went inside that world. That would explain the posters in that room.  
Which means… if we look around, we might find a place that has something to do with Senpai, too." Yosuke said. You visibly cringed, knowing exactly what he meant.

"Yosuke, don't tell me…" Chie said.

"Yeah… I'm thinking about going in again. I want to find out for myself." He said looking at you. You of course were his only way in, so you HAD to go too.

"D-Don't do this… You should just let the police hand this and-" Chie muttered trying to convince him otherwise.

"You think we can rely on the police!? They haven't made any progress on the announcer's case. Besides, even if we told them about the world inside the TV, there's no way they're gonna believe us! If I'm completely off-base with this, that's fine… It's just… I need to know why Senpai had to die like this." Yosuke said.

"Oh, Yosuke…" Chie said.

"I understand how you feel Yosuke-kun, but like that bear said, that place is dangerous…" You said.

"Look, _, if I could go in myself, then I would. Sorry… but you're the only person who can help me. I'm gonna go get ready. I'll be waiting for you at Junes." He said taking off before you could even answer. You sighed. 'What have I gotten myself into…?' You thought biting your lip.

"I can kinda understand how he feels… But we can't be sure we'll be able to get out safely again. What should we do…?" Chie asked looking over at you.

"Why are you asking me?" You asked sighing. "I guess… I'll go with him…"

"What!? That's crazy! What if something happens to you?"

"I don't have a choice, now do I?" You said. "I doubt Yosuke-kun will take 'no' for an answer." Chie sighed.

"No! I'm not going to let him just force you to go in there!" She said storming off to go stop him. You sighed swallowing your fear as you followed her.

When you arrived at Junes, you immediately went to the entertainment section spotting Yosuke.

"You guys came!" He said happily. You sighed.

"We came to stop you, idiot! C'mon… You really shouldn't do this. It's too dangerous." Chie said.

"I know… But we were able to come back once, right? If we go in from the same location, maybe we'll meet that bear again." Yosuke replied.

""Maybe" isn't good enough!" Chie said and you nodded.

"Look, I can't just act like everyone else and pretend this has nothing to do with me." Yosuke said frowning.

"That's true, but…" Chie said looking down.

"What about you? Could you just walk away?" Yosuke asked you as the attention was brought back to you.

"No but-" you started. 'I'm scared…' You thought looking at him. 'Really scared…'

"It'll be just you and me." Yosuke said. 'Was that supposed to make me feel better? Cause it didn't.' You thought. "Don't worry, I'm not going in without a plan. Chie, I'm leaving you in charge of this." He handed Chie a rope.

"Huh? What's that? A rope…?" Chie asked raising a curious eyebrow.

"We'll go in with this tied to me, so I want you to hold on to this and wait here." Yosuke said.

"Wh-What? Then, is this a lifeline? C'mon, wait a sec…" Chie interrupted feeling worried.

"Here, _… This is for you." He said handing you a golf club and some medicine. You took it uneasily.

"I thought it might be better than going in empty-handed." He said. 'Not better then not going at all!' You thought as you walked toward the TV cautiously.

"Alright… Let's go. There's no use wasting any more time. Chie, whatever you do, don't let go of the rope!" Yosuke said as you stepped inside the TV.

"H-Hey! I said wait!" Chie said desperately, but it was too late, you two had already gone inside.

You fell again, landing hard on your butt.

"O-ow…" You heard Yosuke's voice in the background. You stood up feeling uneasy and angry. 'How could Yosuke-kun do this to me!? Why the hell did I even DO this!?' You scream at yourself mentally.

"Is this…? Look, this is the same place as last time! So they are connected from place to place!" Yosuke said.

"Yeah, I see." You said frowning.

"Hm? What's wrong?" He asked.

"Nothing, let's just find whatever the hell you're looking for and get out of here." You said.

"_...?" He started. "Seriously, what's wrong?"

"I'm scared, okay! What if they WERE killed here, huh? What if the killer lives here or something? I SERIOUSLY doubt a golf club is going to protect me! I can't believe you made me do this!" You yelled at him and he cringed. "You NEVER think anything through! I could DIE! WE could DIE!" You glared at the ground frustrated and frantic.

"_ I-" He started.

"Just leave me alone!" You said throwing the golf club down on the ground angrily. Yosuke watched you for a moment before pulling you into a hug.

"I'm really sorry…" He whispered. "I should've waited to hear what you thought, but after what's seen and what I've put together… I just… needed to know." You huffed hugging him back after a moment.

"Whatever…" You muttered sighing. "We're already here, so we might as well look around…" He smiled stepping away from you.

"Heh, thanks, _." He said. "And don't worry, if anything happens I'll protect you." He said and you rolled your eyes.

"Yeah, right!" You said. "You'll probably toss me at them and run away like a dog with your tail between your legs." You said.

"Aw, so little faith…" He said pouting.

"Y-You guys…" Someone said. Yosuke jumped hiding behind you as the bear from before appeared in front of you.

"So much for protecting me! See I was right!" You said.

"Heh, I was just joking." He said and you rolled your eyes.

"Why'd you come back…? I get it! You're the ones behind this!" It said.

"You're that thing from last time…! Wait, what the hell did you just say!?"

"Lately, I can tell someone's been throwing people in here. It's making this world more and more messed up… This is the second time you guys came here. And I don't think anyone forced you in. That means you're the most suspicious! You guys must be the ones throwing the people in here, raaaawr!" It said. 'Did it… just growl…?'

"Hell no!" You said frowning.

"What're you talking about, "throwing people in"!? If someone was thrown in here and they couldn't get out, they might die! Who would do such a- Wait a sec…" Yosuke started before he turned to look at you. "All this talk about someone throwing people in here… Does he mean Senpai and the announcer? Did that "someone" throw those two in here? H-Hey… What do you think?" You shrugged.

"Yeah, that sounds logical…" You said.

"Yeah… I agree. Let's assume he's telling the truth… Could it be that someone's throwing people in here, intending to kill them…? If that's the case…" Yosuke said.

"What're you guys mumbling about? Why'd you come here, anyways!? It's a one-way door! You can't get out once you're in! Remember? How I had to let you guys out?" It said.

"Yeah, whatever. We don't need your help this time! See, this time we have a lifeli-" Yosuke said pulling on the rope showing how it's been cut on your way down.

"Oh my god! We're gonna die, we're go gonna die!" You said.

"Calm down we're not gonna die!" Yosuke said. "H-hey you better let us out once we're done investigating here!"

"Grrrrr! I'm the one who wants to investigate! I've lived here for a long time. But it's never been noisy like this till now. Do you have proof!? Prove to me that you're not throwing people in here!" The bear said.

"I don't think it works that way…" You said sighing and trying to calm yourself.

"See! So it is you guys!" The bear said.

"For the last time, it's not us, so we've go nothing to prove to you! Hey, you better answer our questions. This isn't like last time, when we came by accident. We're dead serious!" Yosuke said frowning and you nodded. "Listen up, 'cause people have died in our world… Every time the fog appears, a dead body shows up with it. It has to be related to this place somehow! If you know something, tell us!"

"A dead body? Whenever the fog appears…? I know that if it's foggy on your side, the fog lifts here. It's really dangerous when the fog lifts. That's when the Shadows get violent. Aaaah… I get it…" The thing said.

"Y-you do?" You asked.

"Huh…? If you get it, then explain it to us, dammit! If it's foggy on our side, it isn't in here…? Shadows get violent…?" Yosuke said racking his brain to understand.

"That's why I said to hurry back! It's dangerous when that happens!" The bear said getting completely off topic. "Okay, no more questions. I know you did it! You better stop right now!"

"I've told you and told you, we're not the ones doing it! I've about had it with you… Why the hell won't you listen to what we're saying!?" Yosuke said losing his temper, you on the other hand, had finally calmed down as was trying to piece together all of the information you were receiving.

"I-I'm just saying… you might be the culprits. I'm just making sure…" The bear said.

"What…? Man, this bear's driving me nuts… What is this place, anyways? It looks like a TV studio… Is something being filmed here…? H-Hey, don't tell me… Is that weird show being filmed here!?" Yosuke said. 'The Midnight Channel…?' You wondered.

"Weird show? Filmed? What does that mean?" The bear asked. You blinked.

"Uh… I'm asking if someone's been filming the people that get thrown in here." Yosuke said.

"…? I don't get it… This world has always been like this. No one has ever done that filming thing here." It replied.

"Always been like this? What is this world exactly? Who else lives here?" You asked it.

"Only me and Shadows are here! I told you before!" It told you.

"Ugh… We don't know what these Shadow things are! Or what you are either, for that matter! You keep telling us to prove our innocence, but you're the most suspicious thing here! Maybe you're the real culprit! And what's with that stupid costume!? I'd say it's time you showed your face!" Yosuke said approaching it and tugging on its head as the poor bear tried his hardest to pull away.

"Uh, Yosuke-kun I-" You started before the top came off and you were face-to-face with an empty bear suit.

"Whoa!" Yosuke said so surprised that he dropped the poor things head.

"I-It's empty!" You said.

"Wh-What the hell are you…? I-It's empty inside…" Yosuke said stepping back toward you. The bear grabbed his head and placed it back on.

"Me…? The culprit…? I wouldn't do such a thing… I just live here… I just want to live here peacefully…" The bear said. "Okay. I'll believe that you guys aren't the culprits. But I want you to find the real guy who did all this. You have to stop him. Promise me, or else…"

"Or else what?" You questioned.

"I'm not gonna let you guys outta here." He said.

"W-whaaat?!" You said.

"Y-You little…!" Yosuke said glaring at it. The bear approached you.

"This can't keep going on! My home here will be a complete mess!  
And then… and then… I…Waaah…" He said burying his face in your uniform sobbing.

"Wh-What're you crying for all of a sudden? Geez, this thing's really weirding me out…" Yosuke said as you desperately tried to separate yourself from the bear. Yosuke frowned trying to pull the bear off of you.

"Damn bear! How are you so heavy if you're empty inside?!" He said tugging as the bear clung to you. You sighed deciding just to let the stupid thing cry. Yosuke sighed letting go of it as it continued to cling to you helplessly crying.

"So what should we do…?" You looked over at him as the memory of your dream the other day popped into your head. The strange man that gave you that unusual reading into your future.

"It seems you will encounter a misfortune at your destination, and a great mystery will be imposed upon you…" Igor had told you. Was this what he meant? Was this the mystery? The bear looked up at you.

"You're the only ones I can ask, can you promise me?" It asked you. You sighed before smiling at it.

"I promise," you said patting it's head as it still clung to you. It smiled widely.

"Th-Thank you!"

"Damn bear… Practically holding a gun to our heads… But… it's true that we came here to figure things out. So far, we're completely in the dark. Look for the culprit, huh…? Bring it on! You got my word, too. Might as well introduce ourselves… I'm Yosuke Hanamura, and this is my friend, _ _.  
You got a name?" Yosuke asked it.

"Teddy~!" He said proudly. You and Yosuke sweat dropped.

"Should've seen that coming…" You muttered.

"Figures… But how are we supposed to find the culprit in the first place?" Yosuke asked.

"I dunno… Oh, but I know where the last person came in."

"The last person…? You mean Saki-senpai!?" Yosuke asked hopeful.

"I mean the person who came in and disappeared last time. I dunno the name. I'll take you there. You might find clues. Oh, one thing first. You two should put these on." Teddy said handing you a pair of glasses.

"What're these glasses for…?" You asked him curiously as you put them on. You gasped at how the fog suddenly seemed to disappear.

"Whoa!The difference is like night and day… With these on, it's like the fog doesn't exist." Yosuke said.

"And they're my favorite color! How'd you know Teddie?" You asked him and he grinned.

"I just thought of what would look best on you~." He said happily and Yosuke sweat dropped.

"They'll help you walk through the fog …Well, I've been here for a long time. So you can rely on me! Uh… But I can only show you where the place is. You guys will have to defend yourselves." He said and you raised an eyebrow.

"What happened to relying on you!? Th-There better not be any monsters! You understand!? We brought weapons, but I mean… They're more for show! We just got here! If it's so dangerous, why don't you do something instead of relying on us!?" Yosuke said and you nodded.

"Yeah, I mean you DID say you lived her forever, right?" You said.

"Uh uh. No way. I've got no muscles. Oh! Oh! I'll give you guys moral support from a safe distance! How's that sound?" Teddie said.

"Awful…" You grumbled. "Can you REALLY not fight?" You asked poking him he toppled over onto his back as he kicked his feet and waved his arms in an attempt to get up. You and Yosuke sweat dropped irritably.

"N-noooooo!" Teddie said as he struggled.

"Nope, he can't fight." You said sighing.

"I-Is this thing for real!? Ugh, this is so lame… We swore to find the culprit, and this is all the backup we get…?" Yosuke said sighing.

"…Oh yeah. Can I ask you something? Who's this Saki-senpai person? Someone you know?" Teddie asked and you bit your lip glancing over at Yosuke.

"That doesn't matter right now… Anyways, at least now we know Senpai might have been thrown in here. Maybe we can find more information, too. Let's get moving, _." Yosuke replied as he walk away. You nodded as you started to follow him.

"W-Waaaait!" Teddie said as he struggled to get up. You sighed.

"Oh, Teddie…" You muttered as you walked over to him and tried to pull him up. "Y-you're so heavy!" You tugged a bit harder succeeding in finally pulling the bear to his feet and you grabbed the golf club before you rushed after Yosuke.

You were lead to a place the resembled the shopping district in town, but… a lot creepier. You looked around with a confused expression.

"What is this place…? It looks just like the shopping district…" Yosuke said. "What's going on?"

"Some weird places have appeared here recently. Things are getting so tangled, I dunno what to do…" Teddie said.

"Uh… by the way, why are you standing so far from us? …You better not be planning to high-tail it if something does come up." Yosuke said and you looked over at Teddie who was a ways away.

"O-Of course not! I mean. Uh, I can't stand too close, you know. I'd get in your way…" Teddie replied.

"Yeah, whatever…" You grumbled.

"Hrrrm… Man, they really went all out on this… But out of all the places in town, why'd they replicate this one?" Yosuke asked and you shrugged.

"How should I know, this is reality for whoever's here…" Teddie answered.

"As usual, nothing you say makes any sense…" Yosuke said sighing. "But if this is our shopping district, we're not far from Saki-senpai's…" Yosuke ran off and you looked at Teddie.

"Are you saying… The person that gets thrown in here creates this world…?" You asked.

"I don't know for sure, but that's how it seems." He replied. You nodded slightly before running to catch up with Yosuke.

"I knew it! This is the liquor store that senpai's family runs." Yosuke said peering inside. "Does this mean… Senpai disappeared here? What could've happened…?"

"W-Wait a second. Th-They're here!" Teddie said cowering behind you.

"Here? What's here?" You asked.

"What?" Yosuke demanded.

"…Shadows. I had a feeling they were going to attack…!" Teddie said. You frowned.

"Is that happened to Saki-senpai and Ms. Yamano? Did shadows attack them?" You asked worriedly. You gripped the golf club as you looking inside of the liquor store seeing strange objects coming out of the store. You gasped and Yosuke stepped in front of you, making a feeble attempt to protect you. Teddie had talked about Shadows being the other things that lived here, and now you knew what he meant. At first they looked just like blobs of darkness, but they quickly changed into even more freakish shapes.

As the shadows approached you, you suddenly started to hear the strange voices again, the ones you heard the other day.

_"I am thou, and thou art I…'_You gasped as you felt a strange power erupting inside of you. A card appeared in front of you. You once again remembered what Igor had said in you fortune reading.

"You will enter into a contract…" He started. Was this the contract? You cautiously reached toward the card and said the very first thing that came to your mind.

"Per..so..na…" You muttered crushing the card in your hand as a creature appeared behind you, but you were certain this one was on your side. The creature attacked the shadows mercilessly destroying them and saving us. It took the form of Izanagi, a god you learned out in World History; it supposedly created Japan in ancient times. Yosuke was pretty freaked, but you can't really blame him. It's not every day that you're in a TV and see crazy tongue monsters fight a girl with a golf club and supernatural powers.

"W-whoa! W-what was that?!" Yosuke asked.

"I uh…-" You started not really knowing yourself.

"Did I hear you say "Persona"!? What was it- I mean, what did you do!? Hey, you think I can do it too…?" Yosuke babbled on very interested and perhaps impressed.

"Calm down, Yosuke. You're troubling Sensei!" Teddie said walking up to you.

"S-Sensei…?" Yosuke asked and you raised an eyebrow.

"Gosh almighty! You're amazing, Sensei! I am one impressed bear! I can't believe you were hiding such an amazing power! No wonder the Shadows were scared of you!" He gasped with realization. "Are you the one who's able to bring people into this world?" You nodded slightly.

"Yeah, but I didn't throw those two in here I swear!" You insisted.

"Hah! That's what I thought. You really are something!" Teddie said. "Don't you think so Yosuke?" Teddie glanced over at the boy with a grin.

"Dude, you call her Sensei and then don't show me any respect!?" Yosuke said frowning. You sweat dropped.

"Sorry…" Teddie said rolling his eyes.

"W-Well, your support wasn't bad, though. I gotta give you some credit for that." Yosuke said. You nodded patting him on the head.

"I'm really grateful, Teddie." You said and he blushed.

"Huh? R-Really…? Heehee." He said nuzzling against you. Yosuke rolled his eyes.

"All right, you two keep it up, and I think we'll be fine from here on out. Now, let's get back to the investigation!" Yosuke said wandering inside as you and Teddie followed. "Man… I wonder what could have happened to Senpai here."

_"I wish Junes would go under… It's all because of that store…" _A strange voice started.

"Wh-What the…?" Yosuke commented.

_"Oh, I heard that Konishi-san's daughter is working there."_

_"Oh my… How could she, with her family's business suffering like it is…?"_

_"I heard their sales have gone downhill because of Junes."_

"S-Stop it…" Yosuke said visibly pained by the words.

_"That poor father… to have his own daughter working for the enemy." _

_"What a troublesome child…"_ You blinked listening. 'Is Junes really this awful to everyone in the shopping district? Then why do they all shop there? Hypocrites…' You thought frowning.

"Hey… Hey Ted." Yosuke said suddenly giving the bear a nickname now. "You said that this place is reality for those that are here, right!? So... does that mean this was Senpai's reality when she wandered in here…?" You blinked, that DID sound reasonable.

"I… only know about what's over here." Teddie insisted, but that also sounded reasonable.

"Fine… Whatever's going on here… We'll find out ourselves!" Yosuke said proceeding further inside. You and Teddie quickly followed after him.

_"Saki, how many times do I have to tell you!?" _A male voice boomed.

"I-Is this… Senpai's dad…?" Yosuke asked curiously.

_"You know what the neighbors say about you, right!?  
Aren't you ashamed of yourself? You're the eldest daughter of a family who's owned this store for generations! Is it the money? Or did you meet some guy there? Just tell me why you have to work THERE, of all places?!"_

"I… I can't believe this… She seemed like she had fun at work… She never said anything like this to me… You're telling me THIS was how Senpai really saw things!?" Yosuke yelled slowly falling apart.

"Yosuke-kun…" You started. Yosuke proceeding inside, looking around. He paused looking down at the table gazing at a photo.

"These photos… Hey… Is this…?" Yosuke started gazing at the photo intently. You peered over his shoulder to look at it. "It's the photo we took the other day with the other part-timers at Junes… Wh-Why's it cut up like this…?" The torn up photo showed Saki smiling and Yosuke standing beside her grinning.

_"I… never had the chance to say it…"_ A strange voice that resembled Saki's said.

"Is that… Senpai's voice!?" Yosuke said hopeful. You bit your lip unsure of what you were going to hear next.

_"I always wanted to tell Hana-chan…"_ The voice continued.

"Huh…? Me…?" Yosuke said waiting impatiently for what was to come.

_"…that he was a real pain in the ass. I was nice to him just because he was the store manager's son, that's all… But he takes it completely the wrong way and gets all enthusiastic… What a dip." _The voice replied. Your eyes widened. 'I knew something about her attitude toward him was forced! I just thought it was stress but…' You thought looking over at Yosuke. He didn't seem to be taking this well.

"P-Pain in the ass…" He started. You felt some pity for him. He shouldn't have heard it this way…

_"Who cares about Junes, anyway? Because of that store, our business is ruined, my parents hate me, the neighbors talk behind my back… I wish everything would just disappear…"_ Saki's voice continued.

"I-It's a lie… This can't be… Senpai's not like that…!" Yosuke attempted to convince himself. You stepped a bit toward him in an attempt to comfort him, but another voice stopped you.

_"It's… so sad! I feel soooo sorry for myself boo hoo." _Something said that reminded you of Yosuke, but of course it couldn't be him, because you were looking right at him! Not to mention it was sarcastic and taunting. That wasn't like Yosuke… You turned around and was face-to-face with something that resembled Yosuke, in fact, it looked JUST like him!

"Actually I'M the one who thinks everything's a pain in the ass." It said laughing bitterly.

"H-Huh? Two Yosukes…?" Teddie said mimicking your thoughts.

"Who are you!? I-I wouldn't think that…" Yosuke insisted.

_"Hahaha… Yeah, right. How long are you going to keep deluding yourself?  
Screw the shopping district, and Junes too! You're sick of everything, especially living out in the sticks!"_ The other Yosuke said. 'Does he… really think that?' You thought.

"What're you saying…? That's not true, I-" Yosuke insisted, but the other him was relentless.

_"You put on a good show of being carefree and happy-go-lucky 'cause you're so terrified of being alone. The more the merrier, right? You've gotta be surrounded by people to block out the pain of isolation. And what's this about checking out this world for Saki-senpai's sake? Hah! I know the real reason you came snooping…"_

"S-Stop it!" Yosuke said biting his lip.

_"Hahaha! Why so panicked? I thought I was just spouting bullshit! Or maybe… I DO know everything you're thinking! Why's that…? Because I AM you!" _'W-what?' You thought.

_"You just came, because you thought it'd be a good time! What else is there to do out in this shithole?! A world inside the TV-now that's exciting! You didn't have a single other reason for coming here, did you!?" _It continued._ "Aw, who cares if something happens to _ or Chie? It'd be fun, right?" _It laughed mockingly.

"That's not true… Stop… Stop it…" Yosuke said feeling defeated and embarrassed. You listened quietly. You didn't exactly believe that this was really how Yosuke felt. The way he apologized to you when you first came in was sincere.

_"You're just trying to act like a big shot… If all went well, hey, maybe you could even be a hero! And that Senpai you were so sweet on? Her death was the perfect excuse!"_

"That's not true! What are you!? Who are you!?"

_"I already told ya. I'm you… Your shadow… There's nothing I don't know about you!"_ 'His… shadow?" You thought curiously.

"Screw that! I don't know you!" Yosuke started a bit of worry struck you. "You can't be me, you son of a bitch!" The other him started to laughed manically.

_"That's right. I'm not you. I'm ME now!" _It said changing into a strange creature. Yosuke was knocked down in the process.

"Y-Yosuke-kun!" You said.

"We have to save him!" Teddie said worriedly. You nodded facing the shadow nervously. 'Okay… just like before… I can do this.' You thought mentally preparing yourself for battle.

_"I am a shadow… The true self_…" It started. _"I'll crush everything that bores me… Starting with you!" _

"How rude, I'm fun!" You insisted and it cackled at you mockingly. You grumbled as you got into a fighting stance.

_"You calm down and concentrate_." Izanagi advised. It spoke to you mentally and you gasped.

_"W-wha- you can talk to me?!" _You asked him.

_"You're not doing so great with the calming down thing…" _He said.

_"O-Oh… sorry…" _You said chuckling. Izanagi sighed.

_"I'll help you. Together, there's no way we'll lose." _He reassured you and you nodded.

_"Yeah, you're right! We can do this." _You said. Somehow Izanagi was able to calm you, make you feel better and more confident about facing this shadow.

_"Together, we'll save him." _

Fortunately, the shadow was weak against Zio skills, which Izanagi had. You were able to beat the shadow, but not without taking a few blows yourself. Miraculously, the golf club DID come in handy and you were glad you decided to bring it.

_"Good job, _."_ Izanagi said. _"You did it." _

_"No, WE did it." _You said and he chuckled softly.

After defeating it, the strange creature reverted back to a strange duplicate of Yosuke. Yosuke himself had finally gotten to his feet.

"I…I…" Yosuke started. You looked over at him.

"Yosuke are you okay?" Teddie asked.

"Yeah… W-what happened?" He asked looking over at his duplicate.

"You… You're… not me…" Yosuke insisted glaring at the shadow. You sighed softly.

"That thing came from you, Yosuke… You have to admit it… or it'll go berserk again…" Teddie said and looked over at you. "And I don't know if Sensei will be able to beat it again." Yosuke looked over at your bruised form.

"Yosuke-kun… No matter what that shadow say… you're still yourself…" You said.

"Myself… Dammit… It hurts to face yourself…" Yosuke said looking over at it. "I knew it wasn't lying... But I was so ashamed that I didn't want to admit it… You're me… and I'm you. When you get down to it, all of this is me." He said. The shadow nodded as it suddenly vanished and turned into a persona wielding the name Jiraiya based off of a ninja who used frog magic.

"This is my Persona… When we heard Senpai's voice… I wonder if that was something Senpai had been keeping deep down inside… Haha… "He was a real pain in the ass," huh? What a way to find out… Geez, this is so embarrassing… If you weren't here, I don't know what woulda happened… Thanks, _." Yosuke said smiling over at you and you smiled back.

"So much for protecting me, huh?" You joked and you two laughed.

"Heh, sorry." He said. "Hey, Teddie… Could Senpai have been attacked by her other self here? Like how it just happened to me?" You blinked and looked over at Teddie for an answer.

"I think so. The Shadows here were originally born from humans. Sometimes the fog clears. Then they all go berserk… And you saw what happens next. A strong-willed Shadow draws others to it. And the big mass of Shadows kills the host." Teddie answered.

"Scary…" You said not at all liking the sound of that.

"So that's why people die when it gets foggy in our world…" Yosuke said in realization. It didn't take him long before he sighed tiredly.

"Yosuke's pretty worn out… This world isn't made for humans. It's not comfortable for you here. I don't hear any more voices. I think we're done with this place. Let's go back." Teddie said and you nodded.

Between Teddie and yourself, you helped Yosuke back to the entrance.

"Hey, Teddie. You said that this place is reality for people who enter, right? So that shopping district, and the weird room we saw before… Did they exist because the ones who died entered this world, and it became their reality? I guess what I'm trying to ask is… Did those places form because of the people who entered this world?" Yosuke asked standing up properly without your support.

"I don't know. It's never happened before… But that's probably where they were when the Shadows attacked them." Teddie answered.  
"Killed by their own darker impulses…" You muttered.

"The fog does lift here sometimes. The Shadows get really violent then. I always get so scared. I have to hide when it happens… I sensed people here twice before. But both of them disappeared after the fog lifted…" Teddie answered.

"Then… It's all true…" You said.

"So let's get this straight… Senpai and that Yamano lady were thrown in here, and since they couldn't get out, they wandered around… After a while, that Shadow thing came out of them. The fog cleared, it went berserk, and it ended up killing them… Does that sound right? So if I'd been here until the fog cleared, I woulda been in much deeper trouble?" Yosuke said.

"Yeah. I'm pretty sure. You were lucky. Sensei and me were here with you." Teddie said and Yosuke looked over at you.

"Senpai and that announcer… They were stuck here all alone… No one could save them…" Yosuke said.

"Yosuke…"

"Yosuke-kun…"

"They disappeared when the fog lifted. But they were safe before that. No Shadows attacked them. They attacked us, though… Maybe they've been keeping a close eye on us. They might see people who investigate this place as enemies… It'll be dangerous, but we might be able to fight them! We might be able to save people!" Teddie said happily. You sighed. 'I'm not so sure I can do this. It's not as easy as it looks…' You thought.

_"Trust in yourself, _. You're capable of anything with your friends at your side. You're never alone." Izanagi said._

_"Alright… I'll try. I DO want to help people. I don't want anyone else to die."_

"Are you saying, if anyone else gets thrown in here, we can save them before they disappear!? Like how you guys saved me!?" Yosuke said.

"It seems so…" You said.

"Anyways… We need to catch the one who's throwing people in here and make him stop. Yeah… I'm finally starting to understand what's going on." Yosuke said.

"U-Um… Hey, can I ask something too…? If Shadows are born from humans, what was Teddie born from?" Teddie asked. You blinked.

"H-huh?" You asked him.

"You don't even know where you came from!? How should we know?" Yosuke asked him.

"I know some things. Mostly about this world… But I don't know anything about myself. To be honest, I never thought about it until now…" Teddie admitted.

"Aw… Teddie…" You said.

"Are you serious…? No wonder we couldn't get a straight answer out of you…" Yosuke said and you nodded.

"Will you guys… come back here…?" Teddie asked and you smiled.

"Of course Teddie, we promised, right?" You said smiling.

"You'll… keep your word?" He asked you excitedly.

"Well, you're the one who said you weren't letting us out unless we do." Yosuke said.

"Oh! Th-That's right! Okay, I'll let you out. But there's one thing. I'll be waiting for you guys here. You need to come in from the same place every time. So we can meet up." Teddie said.

"You mean the TV at Junes?" You questioned.

"You could come in from somewhere else. But then you won't end up here.  
You might show up somewhere I couldn't get to you. Then you'd be doooomed…  
Got it!?" Teddie said and you sweat dropped.

"Well, pretty much… Alright, can you show us the way out?" Yosuke said eager to leave.

"Roger that! One exit comin' right up!" Teddie said tapping his foot to reveal the televisions you saw before.

"Cool… First we need to make sure there aren't any employees milling around out there…" Yosuke said and you nodded.

"Okay! Go go go! Squiiiish!" Teddie said shoving you two.

"W-wait- Teddie!" You said.

"Argh! Hey! Stop squeezing, you little-Whoa!" Yosuke said as you were shoved back into the Junes electronics section. You rubbed your aching tailbone looking up to meet the gaze of a very upset Chie.

"Ah!" She started standing up as the two of you did. "Y-You guys came baaack…!" She said sobbing.

"Huh? Chie? Whoa, what's with that face?" Yosuke asked as she threw the rope in his face roughly. "Ow!"

"The nerve of you! You are such a moron! I can't believe this! You suck! How could you put _ in danger like that?! You're so careless! What if something had happened?! The rope got cut off… and I had no idea what to do… I was so worried… I mean scared stiff, dammit! I hate you both!" She yelled running off crying.

"Me! But I didn't do anything!" You called after her pouting.

"See what you do!" You scolded him.

"I think this might've sorta been our fault…" Yosuke said chuckled.

"OUR fault?!" You said glaring at him.

"Okay, okay MY fault." He said. "Maybe I did go too far. Let's apologize to her tomorrow. I'm completely worn out… I'm gonna go home, soak in the shower for a while, and get some sleep. I think… I'm gonna sleep well tonight. Hehe… Well, see you in the morning!" You huffed and nodded.

"Yeah, okay…" You said as you started to walk out of the electronics department. "Man it's too late to make dinner again… And I promised Nanako too…" Yosuke bit his lip.

"Uh, _, wait." He said and you looked over at him.

"Yeah? What is it now?" You asked.

"When it… my shadow said I didn't care what happened to you… and Chie…" He started. "That wasn't true… I DO care. I didn't want anything to happen to you in there…" You blinked before sighing.

"Yosuke-kun… I know." You said smiling slightly. "And if you really didn't care, you obviously do now and that's all that matters." Yosuke blinked before nodding.

"Heh, I owe ya one." He said.

"You owe me a lot, Yosuke-kun," you said chuckling and he laughed along with you as you left the electronics department.

You checked your phone seeing that it wasn't too late. You had time to make dinner if you hurried. You quickly gathered what you needed, paid and rushed home. You were in such a rush, you hadn't seen Yukiko walking down the street and ran right into her.

"Oh! I'm so sorry! Are you okay?" You said helping her up. You blinked noticing her in the same kimono she was wearing when you first arrived standing outside of the inn.

"Oh, it's alright." She reassured you smiling. "Hm? Oh are you surprised to see me dressed like this? My parents sent me on an errand."

"I see…" You started. You wanted to get home to make dinner, but you didn't want to be rude. You didn't get to talk to Yukiko much, so you wanted to talk to her.

"Oh! Are you getting along with Chie? I mean, I always leave early, so… Umm…" She started. 'Assuming Chie ever speaks to me again after what YOSUKE did to her today, sure I suppose so.' You thought and Izanagi chuckled.

"I think so…" You said smiling.

"I'm glad to hear that. Chie's very supportive, you know. It's always her who gives me the little extra push I need. We had homeroom together last year too, and I still remember how we'd cut class sometimes. Oh… I should get going. I need to make tomorrow's arrangements with our head chef. Our inn can't function without me right now. Um… I'll see you at school, then." Yukiko said as she hurried off.

"Sure if you show up…" You muttered.

_"Are you suspicious of her?"_Izanagi asked.

_"No… It's just… I don't know. She hardly comes to school because of business at the inn, at least that what Chie says, but it's not not normal for her parents to say 'okay stay home and work at the inn', right? I mean my parents didn't pay much attention to me either, but… It just doesn't sound right to me…" You replied. 'Not to mention Ms. Yamano had stayed at the inn JUST before she died, THEN Yukiko stopped showing up. She doesn't seem like the type of person to hurt anyone, but…"_

_"You're very full of 'buts'" _Izanagi said_. _

_"Yeah, well you're not much help either!"_

_"What do you want me to do? I don't have all the answers." _You sighed.

_"I sure wish someone did…" _

_"When you figure them out, you will…" _He mocked.

_"You're trying to upset me aren't you?" _You asked and he chuckled.

You smiled when you entered the Dojima house, finally glad to be home. You spotted Nanako sitting in front of the TV as usual, but Dojima wasn't home.

"Welcome home," she said.

"Hey, I bought some food home to make dinner." You said and she smiled slightly.

"Dad's late…" She muttered.

"Our next story is an update in our ongoing report on the bizarre murders occurring in Inaba. At around 7:00 A.M., local high school student Saki Konishi was found dead in Inaba's residential area. Since the body was positioned similarly to the last victim, and since Ms. Konishi was the one who discovered that body… Police are proceeding under the assumption that this may be a serial murder case related to the death of Mayumi Yamano. The coroner's report has established Ms. Konishi's time of death at around 1:00 A.M. last night. The body went unnoticed until this morning as a result of the heavy fog blanketing the area." The announcer said on the news.

"Another incident… Dad won't be coming home tonight." Nanako said sadly.

"Nanako…" You started pausing in your dinner making to comfort her.

"…I'll be okay. Can you help me do some stuff around the house?" She said and you nodded. Nanako seems to be very reliable for her age. You cooked dinner, showing Nanako how to do a few things, to hopefully help her when she cooks for you sometimes later… hopefully.

"D-did you like my lunch?" She asked hopeful. You cringed hoping she wouldn't ask. Her question brought back the awful taste of the food and you almost threw up all over the food.

"I-It was great Nanako! I loved it!" You said and she grinned.

"Really? Yay!" She said happily and Izanagi snickered.

_"So glad I don't have to eat…"_ He said.

_"Yeah, yeah, rub it in why don't ya."_ You replied.

After cooking dinner for you and Nanako, making a plate for Dojima in case he came home, then making lunch for the three of you in the morning, you sat down in front of the table to eat dinner with Nanako. You watched the news as always.

"…Amagi Inn, located upstream of Samegawa River, is the town's oldest historical landmark. Vacationers are known to travel surprising distances in order to visit its open-air, radium-rich hot springs. After the incident with Ms. Yamano, the manager has stepped aside, leaving her daughter Yukiko to fill her shoes." The reporter said. Yukiko was on the news and she was wearing her kimono. "In other words, she's a manager still in high school! Now that has a nice ring to it… Let's see if we can interview her. Excuse me!"

"Hm…? Um… Are you speaking to me?" Yukiko asked feeling slightly intimidated.

**"**We've heard that you're the new manager. Is it true that you're still in high school?" The reporter asked.

"Oh, well, I'm only filling in temporarily…" She replied. 'So she's filling in as manager, that's why she's been absent…' You thought.

_"Feeling guilty for doubting her?"_ Izanagi teased.

_"Shut up, you!"_ You said and he chuckled.

**"**Someday, though… That aside, wow! You're looking gorgeous in that kimono. You must have a lot of male visitors." The reported asked. 'What a creep!' You thought.

"Huh? No, um…" Yukiko started. The reporter's rambling goes further and further off subject…

"…This is boring. Oh, I need to do the dishes…" Nanako said scrambling to her feet and taking your empty plate and hers running off to do the dishes.

"Oh, I'll help." You said getting up to help her.

After you cleaned, you put Nanako to bed and took a bath before going to your room. It was raining tonight and you wondered what exactly would appear on the Midnight Channel. After promising Teddie to save the people that were thrown in, it was your responsibility to check the Midnight Channel and see if it was related, but it HAD it be, because Saki showed up on it just before she died and there were rumors about people seeing Mayumi Yamano on there as well.

As the clock neared midnight you looked at the TV curiously.

"In other Inaba-related news, meteorologists are predicting heavy fog throughout the year. The region has seen an abnormal amount of fog over the past few years, and the cause of the climate change is unknown. Whatever the reason, residents of the Inaba area should be extra careful. Our broadcast tonight was extended to bring you up-to-date news on the incident in Inaba. The time is now midnight." The weather announcer said. You turned the television off and looked at it intently. A strange image showed up, it was very blurry but it was a shadow of a person. It was obviously a woman, you could tell by the figure. It looked as though she was wearing a kimono. 'Maybe if I put my hand in I can touch them!' You thought reaching out to touch whoever it was, but only feeling emptiness. You sighed pulling you hand out of the TV as the image disappeared. Without any other options, you decided to go to bed for the night and talk about this with Yosuke and Chie; that is, if Chie even speaks to you. You climbed into bed falling asleep almost immediately.

In your dreams you're taken to the strange limo once again, meeting face-to-face with Igor.'I dreamed of this weird place again. Maybe it's not even a dream. I don't know who these people are exactly, but this time hopefully they'll have some answers.'

"Welcome. Do not be alarmed. You are fast asleep in the real world… I have summoned you within your dreams." Igor informed. 'So it IS a dream…' You thought.

"And so we meet again." He said.

"This is a space that only those who have, in one way or another, entered into a contract may enter… In your daily life, you subconsciously heard the call to awaken, and you chose to follow the destiny of your inner voice…thereby enacting your glorious awakening to your power." Margaret told you and you nodded. What he had said before was all slowly starting to make sense.

"Hold on to this…" Igor instructed handed you a blue key. "From this night forth you are our guest in this Velvet Room. Your destiny will require you to hone your power, and for that, you will inevitably require our help. There is but one price for this assistance… You must abide by your contract and assume responsibility for all decisions you may make." Igor told you.

"I understand." You said feeling as thought you did. What he said made sense to you. It was completely crazy, but it seemed like every damn thing else did too.

"Very well. The Persona you have acquired… It is a side of yourself that shows itself when you face the world around you. Perhaps you can think of it as… a façade of determination you wear to face various difficulties in life. You Persona ability, however, is that of the wild card… Compared to that of others, it is very special. It is like the number zero… empty, yet holding infinite potential within itself." Igor informed you. 'Now that made no damn sense. And just when I was feeling smart…' You thought. Izanagi snickered.

"Um…" You started.

"The Persona ability is the power to control one's own heart… And the heart is strengthened through bonds. As you form bonds by becoming involved with others, your own Social Links will gradually develop. The power of these Social Links is what will determine your Persona's abilities." He further explained.

"I still don't get it…" You said and he chuckled.

"Social Links are necessary for more than strengthening your Persona." Margaret informed me. "At times, they will help light the way to the truth you are searching for." I nodded a bit.

"Where will your awakened power of the wild card take you…? I look forward to traveling the road of your destiny together…" Igor said chuckling softly. "'Til we meet again…" He said. The two and the limo slowly faded into black as I drifted off into a deep sleep once again.


	6. Chapter 6

**Date: April 17:**

You yawned softly as you woke up. You felt… better today. After all of the information you'd gathered so far, you were really starting to feel like you could make a difference and talking to Igor had really made you feel better; even though, he didn't really provide you with much information on the case. He said he'd be an asset to helping you in the case and you wondered exactly how. Izanagi seemed to be a great help to you as well… Your persona...

Since you'd gotten up early this morning, you took a chance to go over all that you'd learned thus far with Izanagi.

1.) There's a killer throwing people into the TV world.

2.) It's not the killer that kills them, it's their shadow; their suppressed feelings, that comes out of them.

3.) When the fog clears in 'Teddie's' world, then the fog appears in 'our' world. This is when the shadows get violent and attack whoever may be in there.

4.) When the person dies, their body returns to this world in an unusual fashion, like the way they were hanging upside down.

5.) The first victim was Mayumi Yamano; a TV reporter who had an affair with the council secretary Taro Namatame. Her appearances were canceled she ended up staying at the Amagi Inn to 'escape the media', before she was found dead shortly after. A lot had happened before then though. The council secretary's wife; Misuzu Hiiragi spoke out on the affair and was the only one who DIDN'T suffer from it. Taro Namatame was fired and had to return here to Inaba and Mayumi had to go into hiding, but Misuzu Hiiragi continued to sing.

6.) The second victim was Saki Konishi, a third year at Yasogami High. She worked at Junes against her family's wishes… she was Yosuke's senpai… She was also the one who discovered the body; Mayumi's body.

_"Do you think the murderer is the council secretary? After all, he lost his job and everything over the scandal."_ Izanagi pointed out.

_"No, I mean, it wasn't Ms. Yamano who spoke out on the affair, it was Misuzu Hiiragi; if he was bitter over getting fired, then he'd want to kill his wife."_ You said.

_"True, but you suspected that girl yesterday."_

_"I didn't suspect her! I just said it was possible!"_

_"It's also possible for the council secretary…" _

_"Shut up Izanagi!"_

_"Wasn't it you who wanted to talk about this?"_

_"Ugh, whatever. Maybe it was Misuzu Hiiragi? I mean, maybe she wanted revenge?" _

_"Why? She was the only one that didn't have problems. She's more famous now then she ever was thanks to the media broadcasting the scandal"_

_"Good point…"_

_"Looks like we'll need to find some more evidence." _

_"Yeah…"_ You said as you started to get dress, before you paused. _"W-wait! Can you… see me?" _

_"….Yes?"_ He replied.

_"T-then you can see getting dressed?!"_ Izanagi sweat dropped.

_"I'm YOU, so it's not like I haven't see you before." _

_"T-that's so creepy!" _

_"Just get dressed. You're going to be late for school."_

_"D-don't look!"_

_"How am I supposed to not look? I'm you!" _

_"Fine I'll close my eyes!" _Izanagi sighed.

After getting dressed, with your eyes closed, you walked down the steps and into the kitchen.

"Good morning-" Dojima started before raised an eyebrow. "Did you get up late or something?" You blinked.

"No, why?" You asked him.

"Your… shirt is on backwards…" Dojima answered and Nanako giggled.

"Were you THAT sleepy?" Nanako asked you. Izanagi snickered. You blushed lightly.

"O-oops, heh, I guess so." You said chuckling. Dojima chuckled and took his lunch from Nanako and left the house.

You pouted fixing your shirt and sitting down to eat breakfast with Nanako.

"I'm going to go to a friend's house after school today!" She said happily.

"Oh yeah?" You questioned with a smile. "A boy or girl?"

"A girl! We have to do a project together."

"What kinda project?"

"It has to do with the solar system. We have to make all of the planets revolving around the sun!"

"That's cool~!" You said and she giggled.

"Yeah! Ours is gonna be the best!"

"I'm sure it will!"

After eating breakfast with Nanako, you grabbed your lunch and jacket and left the house. It wasn't raining today, so you didn't need you umbrella, thankfully. After parting with Nanako, you continued on your way. As you approached 'Yosuke's trashcans' you heard his squeaky bike approaching you.

"Yo!" He greeted. "You saw what was on last night, right? I couldn't tell who it was, but if someone's shown on TV, we can't ignore it. Let's go check it out after school. Maybe Teddie can tell us something. If it turns out someone was thrown in again, there really might be a culprit behind all this. Even if it is something about that place that's killing the victims… If someone's using that world as a weapon, that's unforgivable. We need to find the culprit… no matter what it takes! There's no way the police can do it… Who'd believe that the murderer kills people by throwing them into the TV?" Yosuke did have a point.

"Yeah, we definitely got this." You said smiling.

"Hehe… Cool. It's reassuring to hear someone else say it. You know, I tried sticking my head inside the TV last night, the way you did, and it actually worked! I think I can do that now because I have the same power…  
Persona, wasn't it? Could be that we got this gift from someone specifically so we could solve this case. Then again, you managed to go inside the TV and get your Persona first… I feel like, as long as you're with me, I can find the culprit and crack this case… Well, let's do our best!" Yosuke said grinning. You smiled a bit, glad that he seemed to be trying to move on from what had happened the day before. Even if Yosuke acted like an idiot sometimes, he really was a strong person at heart. You blinked rapidly as you heard voices in your head.

_"Thou art I… and I am thou…"_

_"Thou hast established a new bond…"_

_"It brings thee closer to the truth…"_

_"Thou shalt be blessed with creating personas of the Magician Arcana…" _ As you formed a bond with Yosuke, you feel the power in your heart strengthening… You recalled Igor's words.

"The Persona ability is the power to control one's own heart… And the heart is strengthened through bonds. As you form bonds by becoming involved with others, your own Social Links will gradually develop. The power of these Social Links is what will determine your Persona's abilities." He said. 'Social Links… Is this bond with Yosuke what Igor was talking about…?' You wondered.

_"Hm… seems like you're at the beginning of a very… interesting relationship with Yosuke…"_ Izanagi said.

_"H-huh? What's that supposed to mean?!" _You asked and he chuckled.

"_, helllooooo," Yosuke said waving a hand in front of your face knocking you out of your thoughts.

"H-huh?" You asked looking up at him. He raised an eyebrow.

"I said let's go, we're gonna be late." He said and you nodded.

"O-oh, yeah, let's go." You said smiling and he smiled back. The two of you

continued onto school as Yosuke walked with his bike at his side.

"I thought your bike was broken?" You questioned curiously.

"Heh, yeah it is, but I got up late today." He said. You raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean? We're early today…" You said. Yosuke blushed lightly.

"O-oh yeah? Maybe my clock's a little fast, hehe…" He said. Izanagi sweat dropped.

"Hm… well come on let's go." You said and he nodded following after you.

When you arrived in the classroom, you saw that Yukiko wasn't there again. 'Hm… she said she'd be here…' You thought.

_"Well didn't she sorta look like the girl on the Midnight Channel_?" Izanagi asked.

_"Well… maybe." _You said. You and Yosuke sat down in your selected seats and chatted among yourselves for a moment before Chie burst into the room and ran over to you.

You glanced over at Chie, preparing to run away if she decided to kick you in the face.

"Uh… Chie!" Yosuke started seeing the frantic teen. "Um… About yesterday… We're sorry we worried you…"

"WE…" You said frowning.

"Oh-never mind that. Is Yukiko still not here?" Chie said.

"Huh? Y-Yukiko-san? Uh… no…? At least, I haven't seen her today." Yosuke responded.

"I spoke to her last night and she said she'd see me in school today…" You said.

"Oh man… What should I do…? Hey, is that stuff you were talking about for real?  
You know… All that about how people showing up on the Midnight Channel is related to that other world." Chie said worriedly.

"Oh, we were just talking about that. We're thinking of checking it out later-" Yosuke stated.

"The person on TV yesterday… I think it was Yukiko. That kimono looks like the one she wears at the inn, a-and she wore it during the interview a few days ago too. I got worried, so I emailed her last night, but she hasn't responded…  
I called her earlier in the evening, though, and she said she'd be at school today… I-I…" Chie said worriedly.

_"Ha! Who's a genius god? This god_!" Izanagi said grinning.

_"Shut up Izanagi, this is not the time for that, plus we don't know if it's really Yukiko_…" You grumbled.

"Calm down we get the picture. And you still haven't heard from her?" Yosuke asked taking charge for once.

"No…" Chie said her worry only growing. You and Yosuke shared a glance before explaining to Chie all that had happened yesterday inside of the TV.

"What's that supposed to mean…? Wait, are you saying… Yukiko was thrown in there!?" Chie asked.

"We don't know yet for sure. We should check to see if she's safe first.  
Give her another call." Yosuke suggested.

"Yeah, maybe she's just late this morning…?" You said attempting to ease her worries. Chie nodded as she dialed Yukiko's number shakily and listened to it ring.

"No good… Her voicemail picked up… She's not answering…" Chie said worriedly. Yosuke looked at you worriedly.

"Are you serious…? Then is Yukiko-san inside that place…?" Yosuke asked.

"Jus-S-Stop it! Something must've come up, like an errand or something…  
Oh, or she might be helping at the inn… She wouldn't be able to answer her cell if that's it…" Chie said and the two of you shared worried glances.

"Yeah, but would she skip school for that?" Yosuke asked.

"Well… She's missed school as last few days to help out in the inn. Try calling the inn." You suggested.

"Y-yeah, I'll give the inn a call… Umm… I've got the number here somewhere…  
C'mon, Yukiko… Pick up…" Chie said desperately. "Oh! Is this Yukiko?!... Thank God she's there!"

_"You're welcome."_ Izanagi said.

_"Not you!"_ You said to him.

"h-huh… Uh-huh, I see… Hm? Oh. Nah, it was nothing. I'll text you again later…" Chie said hanging up the phone and returning her attention to you and Yosuke. "She was over at the inn. She said they had a big group reservation and she had to help out. Yeah… Now that I think about it, this has happened before, too. At least once a year. She said she'll be at the inn tomorrow, too. Oh, for crying out loud, Yosuke! You got me worried over nothing! She was totally fine! And you were all "Is Yukiko-san inside that place…?" Hmph…" You rolled your eyes. 'Wasn't SHE the one that overreacted when she first came in?' You thought.

_"All women are like that_…" Izanagi commented.

_"I am not!"_

_"Look, overreacting!" _

_"You're ME, so you're a woman too!"_

_"… Touché…"_

"S-Sorry… But there is a reason we thought that." Yosuke said and you nodded.

"Oh yeah…? What?" Chie asked crossing her arms over her chest as she waited for a response.

"Well, we thought people showed up on the Midnight Channel, because they're already in the other world." He said. I mean, it makes sense, right? People show up on the TV because they're inside the TV… But Yukiko-san's still here, in our world. We might want to see what this is about. Alright, let's meet up at Junes after school." The three of you nodded as class started soon after.

Lunchtime came quickly, as usual, and you sat in the classroom with Yosuke and Chie, as usual. You took out your lunch and Chie cringed.

"N-Nanako-chan didn't make that did she?" Chie asked you.

"She sure did!" You exclaimed not wanting to share your food. You happily dug in and Chie made a face before pouting.

"Liar!" She said reaching for it. "You owe me for yesterday!"

"I do not! Yosuke-kun does!" You said.

"Me?! Aw, come on!" He said pouting. Chie paused leaning half on you and half on the desk as she sniffed the air. You blinked raising an eyebrow.

"I-Is that steak, Yosuke?!" She demanded looking at the boy. His eyes widened.

"N-No!" He lied trying to eat it all before she could get it.

"Aw, come on! Share with me!" She practically begged. "I forgot my lunch at home!"

"Tch, fine." He said giving it to her and she practically swallowed it in one bite.

"_ can I-" Yosuke started.

"Nope, it has tofu in it." You said and he groaned.

"Dammit, Chie!" He said glaring at her.

"Sorry~" she said.

"Why don't you just buy something from the cafeteria, Yosuke-kun?" You suggested. Yosuke pouted.

"It's closed!" He said over dramatically. You sighed.

"Alright, alright, you can share with me. Just make sure you pick out the tofu." You said and he grinned.

"Okay, thanks, _! You're the best." Yosuke said scooting over next to you.

"Can I-" Chie started.

"NO!" You and Yosuke said.

School flew by and you were granted with your first homework assignment today. Of course Mooroka HAD to make it really long. You sighed as You walked to Junes with Yosuke and Chie.

"Man who the hell assigns so much homework on a Saturday?" You grumbled as you walked toward the electronics section.

"Only King Moron…" Chie answered as you stepped toward the same TV you used.

"Hey, what if someone wants to buy this TV? What do we do then?" You asked curiously. "I mean, if we put a TV in it's place, does it not matter, or is it different for every TV?" The two blinked.

"Huh… Good question…" Yosuke said. "But this is just a display unit, so it won't be sold unless we run out of TV's and that's not going to happen."

"Hm… I guess you're right. No use in thinking about it." You said shrugging.

"So… explain to me again what happened… I'm not really sure I understood everything with the whole… Yukiko disappearing thing…" Chie said. You nodded explaining to her once again what had taken place yesterday.

"O-Okay, I think that's more than enough about my sorry escapades." Yosuke said and you chuckled.

"If I hadn't seen the place first hand… I'd never have believed a story like that." Chie said shaking her head.

"Yeah, no kidding. Anyways, we need to know what's going on inside." Yosuke said.

"Wh-How? By talking to that Teddie guy?" Chie asked.

"Yeah. Too bad there's so many customers around… I forgot there's a sale in the electronics department today… I got it! C'mere a sec. Try sticking your hand in and calling him over. I bet that bear's wandering around the entrance anyway. Hey Chie, stand over here. Make a wall with me."

"A wall?" Chie asked.

"Wait, I have to talk to Teddie? Why you have power now too…" You grumbled before sighing. You jumped feeling something bite you. You quickly pulled your hand out of the TV.

"O-ow!"

"Wh-What's wrong!?" Yosuke asked worried examining your finger.

"Shhh! Not so loud, you idiot!" Chie scolded him. "D-Dude, is that a bite mark!? Are you okay!?"

"I-I think so…" You muttered.

"That's good… Sheesh, that stupid bear must've done it… Hey, you! We know you're in there!" Chie said frowning.

"Ooh ooh, is this a game?" Teddie asked excitedly.

"No, it's not a game! Can you sense anyone inside there right now?" Yosuke asked him.

"Who's "anyone"? I'm a lonely little bear like always." Teddie insisted. "This land feels so bear-ren…" The three of you sweat dropped.

"Shut it!" Chie scolded him. "So there's no one inside…? You're sure?"

"I-I'm not lying! My nose is running as good as ever!" Teddie said.

"I'm gonna go warn Yukiko anyway. Since she'll be busy this weekend helping out at the inn, I doubt she'd go anywhere alone, but still…" Chie said a bit worriedly.

"Yeah… You'll walk with her to school on Monday, right?" Yosuke questioned.

"Sure, I'll go pick her up at her house." Chie said nodding.

"Maybe we'll find out more on tonight's Midnight Channel. Cross your fingers that this is all just a misunderstanding…" Yosuke said and you nodded. "What's your cell number? I'll call you when I watch it tonight."

"Ohh, you want her cell number, huh?" Chie said nudging him.

"Wha- just for the Midnight Channel, jeez!" He said frowning, but you could see the blush on his cheeks.

"Suuuure," Chie said and Izangi snickered. "Oh, I want your number too!" You rolled your eyes.

"Sure," you said exchanging numbers with the two of them. Yosuke cleared his throat after exchanging numbers with you.

_"He didn't ask Chie for HER number~"_ Izanagi teased.

_"H-he probably already has it!"_ You reasoned.

_"I seriously doubt that."_

_"Just shut up!"_

"Alright, don't forget to watch tonight." He said changing the subject.

"Well, I'm gonna go warn Yukiko, I'll see you guys later." Chie said and you nodded waving to her as she ran off.

"Yeah, I better get to work…" Yosuke grumbled irritably.

"Okay, I need to get some stuff for dinner anyway."

"Oh yeah? Wait for me and I'll give you the employee discount I get." He said running off to get changed. You sighed before going to look for something to have.

"Hm… breakfast food sounds nice…" You muttered.

_"Breakfast for dinner is so unethical."_ Izanagi said.

_"It's just food."_

_"If it was just food, then it wouldn't be called BREAKFAST food. It'd be called food." _

_"That doesn't matter! You can have breakfast food whenever you want."_

_"It's for breakfast, not for dinner. Buy dinner foods."_

_"Oh yeah? Like what?" _

_"How should I know? I don't have to eat."_

_"Well you're the one advising me on what to eat and you don't even eat!"_

_"I was simply telling you it was unethical to eat breakfast food for dinner. It's meant for breakfast, that's why it's called breakfast food."_ Izanagi said. You groaned slamming the food down in frustration.

"Having some trouble choosing?" Yosuke asked chuckling.

"H-huh? No, I'm just fighting with Izanagi…" You grumbled. It was nice to able to talk to Yosuke about it, now that he can relate.

"You can talk to yours too? Well I guess you can, huh?" He said. "About what?"

"He says breakfast food for dinner in unethical."

"How? It's just food right?"

"That's what I said!" The two of you laughed.

"Why not just call Nanako-chan and ask her what she wants?" He suggested. You blinked.

"Oh yeah, good idea!" You said. "Wait! I don't have the house number saved in my phone!" You groaned and sighed. "Plus she's at a friend's house today and probably won't even BE home for dinner…" You sighed. "I give up. I'll just eat ramen…" Yosuke laughed at you.

"Why don't you just eat dinner with me and my family?" He suggested. You blinked.

"Is that… really okay? I wouldn't want to impose or anything."

"Na, it's fine. They won't mind; I'm sure." He said

"Well… okay then, sure I'll go. Thanks for inviting me Yosuke-kun."

"Ah, it's no problem." He said draping and arm over your shoulder. "What are friends for, right?"

After getting suckered into helping Yosuke with his work, you met up with his father at his office.

"Hey dad is it cool if I have a friend over for dinner?" Yosuke asked him through the door. You sweat dropped. 'He's asking after inviting me…?' You thought.

"Yeah sure, tell him to wait by my car. I'll be out in a minute." He answered.

"Hear that, _? Come on let's g-" He started before the door was opened.

"_? That's a girls name." His father said opening the door to peer down at you. You blinked raising an eyebrow. His father patted Yosuke's back.

"Good going Yosuke ~ and just when I was starting to think you were gay!" He said and you sweat dropped. Yosuke cheeks flushed.

"W-what?! No! I-It's not like that. We're just friends." Yosuke clarified and his father sighed.

"Yeah, too good to be true I guess." He said walked off. You sweat dropped and Izanagi seemed to have laughed the entire time.

"H-hey! What's that supposed to mean?" Yosuke asked pouting as the two of you followed him out to his car.

Yosuke's house wasn't too far away from Junes, so it wasn't a long ride. It was mostly silent, since Yosuke was too embarrassed to talk to you after what his father said and his father seemed to be too busy talking on the phone. As you walked toward the house Yosuke finally decided to speak to you.

"Uh, so that homework for King Moron, did you look at it yet?" He asked. You shook your head.

"No, but I'm sure I'll do fine. I took notes in class today." You said. "It's just… a lot." Yosuke nodded.

"I uh… fell asleep…" He said.

"Yeah, I know. Chie took pictures of you drooling on your desk." You said.

"Wha- seriously?!"

"Uh-huh. She said something like 'that's what he gets for sleeping in class~'" You said attempting to mimic Chie laughing. Yosuke groaned just as the door was thrown open and a woman ran over to you.

"Ah! You must be, _-chan, right?" She asked.

"Oh, um, yes." You replied.

"Ah! It's soooooo nice to meet you. Oh, you ARE adorable. Ya know, when I heard Yosuke-kun was having a girl coming over for dinner I almost thought he was kidding or you'd be some creepy looking thing, but you're not!" She said hugging you tightly.

"T-thank you… I think?" You said as she crushed you.

"S-seriously mom!" Yosuke said blushing brightly, seriously regretting suggesting you come over.

After she released you, she ushered you inside, along with Yosuke.

"Sooooo~ how did it happen?" She asked and you raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, they're not a couple." His father spoke up as he sat down at the table. His mother's smile faded.

"R-really?!" She said disappointed. "Why not?"

"C-come on mom seriously!" Yosuke said. "I-It's not like that, okay? We're just friends."

"Just friends for now or…" She pressed. Yosuke sighed.

"Dad!" Yosuke said trying to get him to reason with her. You chuckled softly.

"Alright, alright, let's just eat." His father said as he started eating and the others followed suit. You smiled slightly. His family seemed rather nice.

"Are you two in the same class?" His mother asked and you nodded.

"Yeah, we are." You said and she smiled.

"Well that's nice." She said and you nodded. "Do you spend a lot of time together?"

"Mom!" Yosuke said frowning.

"Well, I just arrived not too long ago, but I've spent just about everyday with him since I arrived." You admitted.

"Oh, so you're the transfer student! Yosuke's spoken about you, but I didn't know you were a girl!" She said excitedly. Yosuke groaned.

"I just mentioned her it's not like we had a conversation…" He said. You chuckled softly finishing your dinner shortly after everyone else. His mother chuckled and smiled.

"Yosuke-kun, could you go into the kitchen and get the dessert please?" She requested and he nodded leaving the room. Suddenly the atmosphere became very serious between his parents and you raised an eyebrow.

"_-chan…" His mother started. "I'm glad that Yosuke-kun met you…" Your eyes widened.

"Yosuke may think we don't pay attention to him, but we do." His father said. "We've known about his… infatuation with Saki for quite some time." You blinked wondering just where exactly this was going.

"It's not that we didn't like Saki, because we did!" His mother clarified. "But… we just didn't think she was right for our son." His father nodded.

"Then, you arrived and it seemed like his attention shifted to you more so than her, even before her passing." He said. "And, personally, you seem like a much better fit for our son than she did."

"When she passed away, I thought he'd never get over it, but when he came home yesterday… He seemed so much happier. When I asked him what he did, he said 'I hung out with _'." she said chuckling. You smiled slightly. It wasn't really YOU who made him feel better, it was that other world that helped him better understand what had happened to Saki and how he was about to better understand himself, but if it weren't for you he'd never know those things.

"I'm not trying to convince you to commit to our son, I promise!" His mother insisted. "I just… wanted you to know that we're really grateful to you."

"Yosuke's always resented me for making him come out here to the country and have to deal with criticism from the town's people, but I do want him to be happy and you seem to provide that comfort and happiness." He said.

"All we're asking is… please take care of our son." His mother told you smiling. You smiled slightly and nodded.

"I will, don't worry." You said and they smiled back as Yosuke came in with the pie and you happily ate it with his family.

After you ate, you were about to leave, when Yosuke's mother insisted he walk you home. You walked home with Yosuke as you looked up at the sky. It was rather dark out and this was the first time you'd taken the time to gaze up at the moon and the stars. Yosuke raised an eyebrow following your gaze.

"If you look at it over the riverbank you can see the moon reflecting off of the river." He said. You smiled looking over at him.

"R-really?" You asked. "Let's go see!" You ran off toward the riverbank, Yosuke chasing after you.

"H-hey, wait up!" He said. You smiled when you finally arrived at the riverbank with Yosuke and you gazed at the reflection of the moon on the river adoringly.

"Wow… It's so pretty…" You said.

"Heh… yeah…" He said watching you for a moment. You sat down on the pier and looked out across the water and Yosuke sat beside you.

"Thanks for telling me about this Yosuke-kun," you said. "I never would've considered looking here on my own." He smiled.

"Heh, it's no problem. I come here sometimes to clear my head. I like it here. It's always really quiet and peacefully." You nodded glancing over at him.

"Yeah… it is…" You said. Yosuke looked over at you as your eyes met for a short moment.

"_..." He started before you cell phone rang. You glanced down picking it up.

"O-oh it's Ojisama!" You said answering it. "Hello?"

"Hey, it's late. You know it's dangerous out there right now. Where are you?" He asked you.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Yosuke-kun invited me to have dinner with his family. I'm actually on my way home now." You replied.

"Alright, just be careful." He advised before hanging up. You hung up placing your phone back in your pocket.

"Well… I should get going…" You said. "See you later Yosuke-kun." He nodded.

"Y-yeah… See you later…" He replied. "Oh! Don't forget to watch tonight."

"Don't worry, I wont." You said running off toward your house.

Once inside, you were greeted by Dojima who was sitting on the couch and Nanako who was sitting in front of the TV, as usual.

"I'm sorry, but I have a lot of homework, so I'm going to go upstairs." You said and Dojima nodded.

"Alright, don't stay up too late." He said and you nodded. You went up to your room and got started on your homework.

After finishing all of the work Morooka gave you, it was almost midnight. You walked over to the TV watching the clock that rested on top of it. When the clock struck midnight, you saw an image start to appear. It was perfectly clear and it was definitely Yukiko! But something was off… She was staying stuff like 'scoring herself a hot stud' and talking about her 'lacy unmentionables.'

"…." You started as you watched.

_"Yukiko is secretly a hoe."_ Izanagi joked.

_"That is not funny!"_ You said. You were taken from your thoughts as you cell phone began to ring. You check it, seeing that it was Yosuke.

"Hello," you started.

"H-hey, did you see that?!" Yosuke asked surprised. "That was Yukiko-san for sure! It looked like her, and I mean, she even said her name! But didn't the stuff she was saying sound weird!? And she looked like she was on some low-budget TV show… Was it like this before, too? What's going on…?"

"Let's calm down. Do you have Yukiko's number?" You said.

"O-oh yeah maybe she can- crap no I don't!" He said. "Oh yeah I can just call Chie! Tomorrow's Sunday, so let's meet up at Junes first thing in the morning!" He said.

"Yeah, okay see you then." You said hanging up.

_"What if Yukiko IS in there?!"_ You thought.

_"It'd prove it was right."_ Izanagi said.

_"This isn't about who was right and who was wrong, Izanagi!" _

_"Yeah, yeah, you're right. Don't worry, if she IS in there, we'll save her, just like we saved Yosuke." _

_"R-right, you're right."_ You sighed, a bit stressed. You quickly changed you clothes and got into bed, trying to fall asleep.


	7. Chapter 7

**Date: April 18:**

When you woke up, you knew exactly where you had to be. You rushed to get ready, before running down the stairs. Nanako was sitting alone in front of the TV.

"Good morning…" She greeted.

"You're up early." You said smiling at her.

"Dad got up early, so I got up with him." She said and you nodded. 'As usual…' You thought. "He said he's going to be late…" You bit your lip. You hated leaving her alone all day, but you had a lot to do with Yosuke today and wasn't about to bring her along.

"Are you going somewhere?" She asked you curiously.

"Oh, um…" You started.

"I'll be fine by myself." She insisted as she turned the television on and flipping through the channels. You nodded a bit before giving her your cell phone number.

"Just call me when you're ready for dinner okay? Since it's Sunday, I'll take you out for something to eat." You suggested and she smiled.

"Really? Okay!" She said happily taking your number.

"See you later." You said smiling as you left the house.

"Bye!" She called after you.

It wasn't long before you arrived at the Junes food court. Yosuke wasn't there yet. 'Huh… he texted me and told me to meet him here five minutes ago… what's taking him so long?' You thought.

_"I think he stood you up." _Izanagi joked.

_"This is NOT a date!"_ You insisted.

_"Well where's Chie? I bet he didn't tell her to meet you here."_ He said. _"And if he had, she wouldn't be late." _

_"Just shut up!"_ You said.

"Sorry for the wait." Yosuke said approaching you. He had his hands behind his back and you raised a curious eyebrow as to why exactly he chose to do that. "I found a few things in the closet at him. Take a look at these!" He said showing you the weapons he'd gotten. He offered two swords that seemed to resemble claws.

( fs71/i/2010/333/f/d/yuna_ffx_2_thief_dressphere_by_ )

"Well, I saw a sword, but then I saw these and they were your favorite color, so I figured, why not?" He said chuckling. You sweat dropped.

"Yosuke-kun… I don't think its okay to have these-"

"We've got our personas, but a golf club isn't that reliable of a weapon…"

"Tell me about it…"

"Two suspicious teens found, one arming multiple weapons. Requesting immediate back up." A nearby police officer said.

"See! I told you!" You said.

"Huh…? Ohh crap, I mean… No… No no no no, this isn't what it looks like. We didn't steal it… Uh, I guess that's not what matters… A-Anyways, we're not doing anything bad! We're just two ordinary kids who like weapons and… Ugh, that doesn't sound right either. Ahaha…" Yosuke tried to reason.

"Yosuke-kun, you idiot!" You said.

"Put the weapons down now! We'll listen to your story at the station. Hands where I can see them, too! I said now!" The police officer ordered. You sighed.

"B-But… This isn't…" He insisted waving the weapons around like a madman.

"Seriously, Yosuke-kun! Just put the weapons down." You grumbled.

**"**Are you resisting an officer of the law!? Y-You're under arrest!"

You were taken to the police station with Yosuke as suspects… It's a good think your uncle is a detective…

"You didn't seem like the type to pull a stunt like this…" Dojima scolded. "You know what's been going on around town. We got men stationed everywhere.  
For god's sake… You're lucky I was around, or this would have ended up on your permanent record." You frowned giving Yosuke an 'I'm going to kill you' look. Yosuke cringed.

"We're sorry…" He said. On top of being scolded, your weapons had been confiscated.  
"Wait, so the one that disappeared was the Amagi girl?" A nearby man asked.

"Seems like it… But she's just a high schooler, you know. Could be that she decided to run away from home…" Another spoke.

"Hey… Did he say Amagi…? Then… she really is…" Yosuke said looking over at you.

"Yeah, we need to get to Teddie." You said.

"Hm? Who's that now?" Dojima asked.

"Oh, uh, nothing…" You and Yosuke said.

"I'm sure you've seen on the news that there's an investigation in progress… We're sensitive about certain things. You're free to go. But this better not happen again." Dojima said and you nodded.

"It won't, I promise…" You said.

Dojima dismissed you two and you headed toward Junes once again. You stumbled almost running into someone, that is, if Yosuke had grabbed your arm.

"Whoa, pardon me." Someone said. You looked up noticing him as the detective who was throwing up when he first saw the dead body the second day you were here. Adachi, Dojima called him.

"Huh? Aren't you the kid staying at Dojima-san's place?" He asked you and you nodded.

"Oh…! Uh, can we ask you something? It's about Yukiko-san… I mean, Yukiko Amagi of the Amagi Inn… Did something happen to her?" Yosuke asked curiously.

"Way to get right to the point, Yosuke-kun…" You said.

"Huh? Oh, umm… Am I allowed to say…? Well, if you're friends with Ms. Amagi… Keep this between us, okay? We got a call from Ms. Amagi's parents yesterday evening saying they couldn't find her anywhere. Since it was the weekend, the workers at the inn were extremely busy, and no one saw Ms. Amagi around that time. Oh, but that doesn't necessarily mean this is a case just yet! But, people've been turning up dead on foggy days… So we're really sensitive to stuff like this. By the way, did she say anything to you guys about maybe going through some hard times?" Adachi asked you and you raised an eyebrow.

"Hard time…?" Yosuke asked.

"Well, that announcer, Ms. Yamano, was staying at the Amagi Inn before the first murder. Seems Ms. Yamano had some harsh words for the manager about the staff's attitude towards guests. The stress of it caused the manager to collapse.  
And with Ms. Amagi being the manager's daughter… She must've felt pretty strongly about the incident, y'know. By the way, did Ms. Amagi ever hint that she might be leaving the house? 'Cause if not, there's been some theories floating around that she's laying low for some reason or another… Crap, I think I've gone too far. You didn't hear that, okay?" Adachi said.

"Adachi, what the hell are you chatting with civvies for!? And where's my coffee!?" Dojima scolded.

"S-Sorry! I got it right here!" Adachi answered. "Psst! Forget I said anything! Please!" He scurried off to take Dojima his coffee. 'Hm… I wonder why he'd just give away information like that…' You thought as you progressed toward the lobby to talk privately with Yosuke.

"Hey, does that detective think Yukiko-san—"

"There you are!" Chie said as she ran up to you. "Sheesh, what're you guys doing!? I've been looking everywhere!"

"Uh, well, there was a slight misunderstanding… We'll tell you about it later. Anyways, something's up with Yukiko-san!" Yosuke started.

"Huh? You know already!? I kept calling her cell, but she didn't pick up… So I went to her house, and it turns out Yukiko really did disappear…!" Chie said worriedly.

"I guess we've got no choice but to go now… But that aside, the cops are saying some weird stuff. They think Yukiko-san's hiding to "lay low"… Apparently, Yukiko-san's mom collapsed because that announcer's lady bitched her out. They think that gives her a motive, and the fact that the announcer died right after makes her even more suspicious…" Yosuke said explaining what Adachi has told you two.

"What!? They think Yukiko did it!? What the hell is wrong with them!?" Chie said.

"Dude, don't snap at me! Yukiko's the victim here, dammit, not the suspect…" Yosuke said angrily. They both seemed agitated.  
"Calm down. We needed to focus on what was important, saving Yukiko." You said gaining the attention of the two of them.

"R-Right! That's the important thing!" Chie agreed.

"With the police totally on the wrong track, we've gotta handle it ourselves." Yosuke said.

"I'm going too!" Chie said.

"But Chie…"

"And that's final! I'm going to save Yukiko no matter what!" She insisted.

"Are you gonna be all right…? But man… They just confiscated our weapons. We can't go in empty-handed…" Yosuke said frowning.

"Weapons…? I know just the place! C'mon, follow me!" Chie said running out of the police station.

"Yeah, cause running isn't suspicious!" You said chasing after her with Yosuke following behind you.

After a long jog later, you arrived at a strange metalworks shop.

"Wh-What kind of shop is this…?" You and Yosuke asked.

"A metalworks… I guess? They sell all sorts of metal crap… like katanas and stuff." She answered.

"Doesn't that seem weird to you!? Why would you know about a place like this anyway?" Yosuke said. "Oh, I get it… You watched one too many kung-fu movies, and…" You chuckled.

"It's not that at all! I overheard some guys in our class talk about it. They said this place sells weapons and armor. Here, this one looks good. Oh, but it might be too heavy…" Chie said looking over the armor and weapons.

"I dunno, Chie… I still think it's too dangerous. I know how you feel, but-" Yosuke started.

"You don't! You don't know shit about how I feel… Yukiko might die from this, for crying out loud! I'm going, and that's that!" Chie said.

"Yosuke-kun DOES know how you feel and that's why we're letting you come." You said. "We know how much you care about Yukiko, but you have to be careful. It's not safe there."

"Psh, I'll be fine! My reflexes are second to none!" Chie insisted and you sweat dropped.

"Listen… I'm not kidding around. You don't know what it's like in there! If you're not gonna listen to our warnings, we're leaving you here! If you insist on coming, just make sure you have something to protect yourself." Yosuke said and you nodded.

"Alright…" Chie said sighing.

"But man, what should we get…? Hey, _. Mind picking out something for me, too? You're our main asset in battle right now, so I think you should choose whatever makes it easiest for you." Yosuke told you.

"H-huh, me?" You asked.

_"Well mainly me."_ Izanagi said.

_"Oh shut up you!"_ You said frowning as you stepped forward picking weapons that mimicked what Yosuke had chosen for the two of you before, except these were real. You handed him what you'd gotten him and some armor as well.

"I got my stuff all picked out! How about you guys?" Chie said after she finished at the counter. You nodded.

"Ya know… if we wear this stuff around town, we'll just get picked up again…" Yosuke said. "But it's not like we can waltz into Junes with a sack full of gear and expect no one to notice, either…"

"Why not conceal them under our uniforms? I don't think people would notice." Chie said.

"Okay… Let's try that. Alright, let's split up and get ready. The store'll be crowded until the afternoon sale ends, and if we walk around together the cops might get suspicious." Yosuke said.

"Then I'll see you guys at the Junes food court!" Chie said as she walked away.

You sighed as you walked toward your house pausing upon seeing a strange blue door that you were certain wasn't there moments ago. As you looked around, you saw that no one else was able to see the strange door either.

"So it finally begins… Now, if you'll give me a moment of your time…" Igor said as you blinked rapidly. The Velvet Key in your pocket shined brightly. You unlocked the door and walked inside.

"We have been expecting you…" Igor started as you sat down in your usual seat in the limo. You blinked seeing a strange boy seeing to the left of Igor. (Yes, I know Marie is a girl, but I'm changing her to a boy, because I can :3)

"The catastrophe that is headed your way… It has already taken human lives in its approach towards you… But you have nothing to fear. You already have the power to fight against it. It seems that the time for you to use your Persona has come…" Igor said chuckling.

"Your Persona ability is that of the wild card. If you strengthen your bonds properly, their power will help you overcome any ordeal. Our role is to facilitate that." Margaret told you.

"My contribution… is to give birth to new Personas. By mixing together multiple Persona cards, I can transmute them into a new form… This, in other words, is the fusion of Persona. You have the power to hold multiple Personas and to use them accordingly. When you defeat an enemy, the seeds of possibility you attain will appear before you as cards. At times, they may be hard to grasp… but you must master your fear and reach out to them." Igor informed you. "When you gain new cards, don't hesitate to bring them here. If you have been developing your Social Links, then your Persona will gain even more power… They will be one of your chief sources of strength… You would do well to take this to heart." You recall that you have the Magician Social Link with Yosuke. It seems that when a Persona of the Magician Arcana is fused, that Persona will gain even more power, so the more time you spend with your friends and strengthen your bonds the stronger your personas will become when you fuse them.

"The tome you see in my hand is the Persona Compendium. Registering the Personas you hold will allow you to recall them at any time. Please see me when you wish to use it." Margaret told you. "Also, I would like to introduce a new resident of the Velvet Room, who will be helping you on your journey." You blinked looking over at the male sitting on the other side of Igor curiously. He held a charming smile and seemed to be your average womanizer.

"Hello, it's always a pleasure to meet a beautiful woman such as yourself." He started. "My name is Takeshi." You sweat dropped and Margaret sighed.

"Please forgive him, his soul is still very young and—" She started.

"Oh come now, I'm not young. I'm very mature… I a lot of different ways." He said winking at you. 'Oh you have GOT to be kidding…' You thought.

_"Abort, abort!"_ Izanagi said overdramatically. You sweat dropped.

"As you can see…" Margaret said sighing. "He may be… brusque at times, but please understand that he is only an apprentice and forgive him for his impoliteness."

"I see…" You replied and he sighed.

"Takeshi will be dealing with "skill cards." Using these cards will allow you to provide your personas with new powers. Also I am sure he will help you form a bond between yourself and the "outside world." Takeshi will contact you at a later date. Please feel free to speak with him here when you wish to use his services." Margaret explained. Igor chuckled as he looked at you.

"Do you recall my words to you before?" He asked. "The coming year is a turning point in your destiny… If the mystery goes unsolved, your future may be forever lost." I meant precisely what I said. Defeat in battle is not the only way your journey may come to an end… Please do not forget this. When next we meet, you will come here for your own will." He chuckled softly and smirked. "I look forward to it… Until then… farewell."

You stood and left the Velvet Room and headed immediately to change and get to didn't know what might be waiting for you in the TV, but with Yukiko's life on the line you had no choice but to meet the challenge head on. When you arrived at Junes, you saw that Chie and Yosuke were already there, waiting for you.

"Man we really stick out… It doesn't help that we're in our uniforms on a Sunday." He said.

"It wasn't my idea…" You said.

"The sale should end soon, so that'll get rid of some of the people wandering around here. Alright… let's get going. Chie, it's not too late to-" Yosuke said.

"I'm going!" She insisted.

"Fine, but don't push yourself, got it!?" He said and you nodded.

"We don't need you AND Yukiko to get hurt." You said and she nodded. The three of you quickly left to the electronics department and went into the TV.

Once arriving inside of the TV, Teddie greeted you as always, but something seemed off. You and Yosuke were quick to put on the glasses given to you by Teddie the other day.

"Whoa it's really the bear from last time…" Chie said disbelievingly.

"What're you doing?" Yosuke asked him.

"Can't you tell? I'm thinking about stuff." He answered with much less pep in his voice. 'It seems he's been thinking about himself all this time…' You thought feeling some pity for him. "I've been deli-bear-ating over it for a long time now.  
Hey, that wasn't a bad joke. Heehee!" Yosuke sweat dropped as Chie fidgeting uneasily.

"…" Yosuke sighed. "So… did you figure anything out? Eh, it's probably useless to think about it too much. I've seen the inside of your skull, and it was empty."

"Yosuke-kun…" You said.

"How rude! You're right, though. I try and try but nothing comes out of my head." Teddie said pouted.

"Oh, Teddie…" You said petting him.

"Will yo guys shut up!" Chie said. "This is NOT the time for stupid jokes! Listen… Someone came here yesterday, right?"

"Wow! There's a girl with a better nose than me!? What's your name, Miss?" Teddie asked her.

"M-Miss? Uh… I'm Chie. But never mind that! Tell me more about that "someone"!" Chie insisted.

"I think it happened a little after I talked with you guys. After that, it felt like someone was here." Teddie said. You frowned.

"Right afterward, damn…" You said.

"Is it Yukiko-san!?" Yosuke pressed.

"I don't know. I haven't looked… The presence is over that way. That's probably where they are." Teddie said pointing.

"Over there, huh…? Is everyone ready?" Chie asked.

"Y-yeah!" You and Yosuke said walking as Teddie lead the way. That freaky castle from the Midnight Channel that Yukiko ran into was waiting for you.

"What the…? A castle!? Y'think this is the place they showed on TV last time?" Chie asked.

"You're positive that no one's behind a camera for that bizarre midnight program?" Yosuke asked Teddie.

"Program…? I don't know. Maybe people on your side can see stuff in this world. It might be that. And I told you before! There's only me and Shadows here!  
There's no "camera" stuff going on. This world has been like this from the beginning." Teddie clarified.

""From the beginning"…? That's what we don't understand!" Yosuke insisted.

'I dunno… Can you guys explain everything about your world? I've never seen this "program" thingy before. So I don't know." Teddie said.

"Give him a break Yosuke-kun, it's not like he created this world. He just lives here." You said.

"Well… is that really what's happening? Are we really looking into this world?  
Because the first time Yukiko showed up on that channel was before she disappeared. Doesn't that seem off? I mean, Yukiko saying stuff like "score myself a hot stud"? That's not like her at all!" Chie said and you nodded.

"Yeah, I noticed that too." You pointed out. "I haven't known her for long, but that sounded completely off."

""Score"? "Stud"?" Teddie questioned curiously.

"Yeah, I couldn't believe it either… Yukiko-san would never say something like that."

"I wonder… Is this kinda like what happened to me last time…?" Yosuke questioned looking over at you and Teddie.

"There's a lot of stuff I still don't get. But after hearing your story… I think that "program" happens because of the person who appears on it. Or something like that…" Teddie explained.

"So… Yukiko is producing that show herself?Ugh, I don't get this at all! Hey… Do you feel Yukiko's presence from inside?" Chie asked.

"I'm pretty sure. So, um, what's this "scoring with a hot stud" thing…?" Teddie asked and you were about to explain it when Chie interrupted you.

"Yukiko's here… I'm going on ahead!" She said running off inside of the castle.

"Hey, wait! Don't go alone!" Yosuke called.

"See, this is exactly why I didn't want to bring her." You said sighing.

"Geez! We better follow her!" Yosuke said and you nodded running in after her. You look around the strange castle.

"It's so creepy in here…" You said and Yosuke nodded.

"She hasn't gone far you should be able to catch her!" Teddie said. "Be careful for the shadows!" You and Yosuke nodded.

You progressed further inside taking out all of the small shadows around you. It was much easier then last time and you felt much more comfortable doing it. You worked well with Izanagi and the two of you bulldozed your way to the stairs with Yosuke at your heels with Jiriyah.

"You're good at fighting, Sensei." Teddie complimented you. "Compared to you, Yosuke stinks…"

"Shut up, Ted!" Yosuke said pouting. "Though I do gotta admit… You have a knack for this stuff."

"Really…?" You asked disbelievingly.

Doesn't she? So you should be the one to give Yosuke orders during a fight." Teddie advised.

"It ticks me off to hear Teddie say that stuff, but I don't wanna cause trouble doing my own thing in battle… So don't hesitate to order me around. I'm counting on you." He said and you nodded.

"Well… okay…" You said as the two of you were met with a large two door room. You pushed it open to see Chie standing in the room looking around.

"Chie?" You asked as you approached her.

"Chie! Are you alright?" Yosuke asked.

"She said that red looks good on me…" A voice that resembled Yukiko spoke.

"Y-Yukiko-san!?" Yosuke called.

"I hated my name… Yukiko… "Snow"… Snow is cold and it melts quickly… It's transient… worthless… But it's perfect for me… Apart from inheriting the inn, I'm worthless… Still… Chie told me that red looks good on me." The voice spoke.

"Are these… Yukiko-san's inner thoughts? I remember hearing Saki-senpai's, too…" Yosuke said and Teddie nodded.

"Yeah. This castle is probably here because of this Yukiko person." He said.

"Yukiko…" Chie said as she listened.

"Chie was the one who gave my life meaning. She's bright and strong, and she can do anything… She has everything that I don't… Compared to Chie, I'm… I'm…" The voice continued. "Chie protects me… She looks after my worthless life… And I… I don't deserve any of it… Chie is so kind…"

"Yukiko…" You said.

"Yukiko, I-I…" Chie started.

""Chie is so kind", huh? What a joke!" Someone said. You and Yosuke froze.

"I-Is that!" Yosuke started.

"Not again!" You said.

"It's just like Yosuke! She lost control over her suppressed self! Now it's a Shadow!" Teddie said.

"Are we talking about THAT Yukiko!? She says I'm protecting her!? She says she's worthless!" Shadow Chie said. "That's how it should be, right?"

"Wh-What're you saying?" Chie asked her shadow.

"Yukiko's sooo good looking… sooo fair-skinned… so feminine… She's the one all the guys drool over. When Yukiko looked at me with such jealousy… Man, did I get a charge out of that. Yukiko knows the score. She can't do anything if I'm not around… I'm better than her… Much, much better!" It responded.

"No! I have never thought that!" Chie defended

"Wh-What're we gonna do?" Yosuke asked you panicking.

"We're going to protect Chie…" You said obviously.'Duh, Yosuke. What the hell else are we gonna do? Have tea?' You thought.

"We need to protect Chie-chan right now!" Teddie said.

"N-No, don't come near me! Don't look at me!" Chie said to three of you panicking.

"Chie, calm down!" Yosuke said trying to soothe her.

"No… No, this isn't me!" She denied.

"W-Wait, stupid! Don't say anything else like that!" Yosuke said. You bit your lip. Should you stop her? Just like Yosuke she had suppressed feelings and just like him, she should accept them. Chie's shadow chuckled mockingly.

"That's right. I'm the one who can't do anything alone… I can't win as a girl, let alone as a person… I'm pathetic." Her shadow said smirking. "But Yukiko… She depends on me… That's why she's my friend… I'll never loosen my grip on her… She's too important to me."

"No… That is not how I think of her…" Chie said denying it.

"So, you're just gonna turn your back and deny me again? But things are different now. When the time comes… I'll be the one left standing." Her shadow spoke stepping closer to her. "You wont mind, right? I'm still you…"

"Shut up! You're…" Chie started at the end of her rope.

"Chie, no!" Yosuke said trying to stop her.

"You're not me!" She screamed. The shadow burst into a fit of maniacal laughter. The other Chie turned into a horrible monster, just like Yosuke's.

_"Huh… she's sitting on people… I get it, because she uses people, ha! She's even got a whip! How creative." _Izanagi said. You sighed.

_"Not the time Izanagi…"_ You said. Chie was knocked down as her suppressed feeling exploded.

"Chie!" You and Yosuke said worriedly.

"I-It's coming! You have to use your powers to save Chie-chan!" Teddie said and you and Yosuke nodded preparing yourself for what was to come. Chie's shadow was relentless.

"I am a shadow, this TRUE self." She said. "What do you guys think you're doing? Trying to defend the "real" me? Then you're gonna pay the price!"

"Shut up! Quit being such a pain!" Yosuke said. "Chie… Just hang in there a little longer…"

"Hah… Think you can stop me that easy!?" Her shadow asked. Teddie analyzed her and you were able to fight her.

"She's got a weakness to wind!" Yosuke said.

"Yeah, but she can use zio skills, so be careful, Yosuke-kun." You advised.

"Heh, don't worry about me." He said.

"Ah hahahaah, how lame. You're all so serious and we've only just begun!" Shadow Chie then she decided to cast Green Wall, which made her resist wind instead of being weak to it for a few turns. Most of her offense comes in the form of nasty whipping attacks, but she did have one other little trick up her sleeve. She gazed a Yosuke irritably and you bit your lip.

"Yosuke-kun guard!" You attempted to command, but he of course being stubborn decided to attack her. Shadow Chie laughed as she chose to cast Mazio on the two of you. Izanagi, being strong against zio, made you perfectly fine, but Yosuke was weak against zio effectively knocking him down.

"Dammit, Yosuke-kun!" You scolded. "You said you'd listen to me!"

"S-sorry…" Yosuke said getting to his feet as the fight continued.

Once the two of you were able to cooperate well together, the fight went well and you were able to beat Chie's shadow and put an end to her raging.

"Ngh…" Chie said as she slowly got to her feet.

"Chie! Are you okay!?" You and Yosuke asked as you ran to help her.

"W-What happened…?" Chie asked biting her lip. Her shadow said nothing as it looked at her.

"What's the matter…? Got nothing to say anymore?" Chie asked it.

"Stop it, Chie. It's all right." Yosuke said.

"B-But…" Chie started.

"Stop acting like a child. Everyone has different faces." You said.

"Everyone…?" Chie asked.

"She's right… I went through the same thing. So I can understand… I mean… Everyone has a side like this…" Yosuke said gesturing over to her shadow.

"Yeah… I kinda get it now. You are me… A side of me I couldn't forgive… That I tried to ignore… But you still exist. You're a part of me…" Chie said looking down ashamed and her shadow nodded and just like before, her shadow turned into a persona. She took the form of Tomoe, an ancient warrior queen.

"I… Um, well it's true that part of me feels that way… But I wasn't lying about being friends with Yukiko…!" Chie defended.

"Like we don't know that already." Yosuke said and you nodded. Chie sighed relieve as she fell to her knees, completely worn out.

"H-Hey! Chie!" Yosuke said worriedly.

"I'm okay… Just a little tired…" She insisted as she tried to stand, but you stopped her.

"You don't look okay at all…" Yosuke said. "And I bet… You can use the same power we have now."

"Huh…?" Chie asked curiously.

"Hey, what should we do?" Yosuke asked looking at you.

"Again with the decision making…" You grumbled. "Well… I think we should leave. Chie doesn't look so good…"

"I agree. We need to let Chie rest." Yosuke said and you nodded.

"I-I never said I needed to rest! I… can still keep going…" She said trying to stand, but you once again stopped her.

"Don't overdo it!" Teddie said worriedly.

"It's not that we don't think you can. It's just, we have to save Yukiko-san, no matter what. Now that you have the power, you can fight with us. It'd be much better for us all if you had your strength back. That's why we're saying we should go back and regroup." Yosuke said.

"But Yukiko's still in here, isn't she!? I-I… If those were Yukiko's true feelings… then I have to tell her something. I'm not as strong as she thinks! It's because she was with me… Because we were always together, I was able to act that way. If we weren't, I'd…" Chie said opening up a bit.

"Well, you need to get your strength back! Then you can tell her! Yuki-chan's normal. The Shadows don't attack normal people. They only attack when the fog lifts here." Teddie said.

"So Yukiko-san will be safe until then?" Yosuke asked and Teddie nodded.

"I'm positive." Teddie said.

"Why…? I don't get it…" Chie said confused, even though you had already explained it, but she was so frantic before you didn't blame her for not remembering.

"Teddie told us that the weather here is the opposite of our own world. When it fogs over in our world… That's the day it lifts here, and that's when the Shadows attack their victim. So even if we leave for a while, Yukiko-san won't be in danger until the fog starts to cover Inaba. I'm sure of it. It was the same way for that announcer and Senpai… Don't you remember how it was foggy in town on the days they died?" Yosuke said.

"You mean… they were killed by their other selves?" Chie asked finally understanding.

"The fog usually appears after it rains. But it's been sunny lately. I don't think it's going to rain anytime soon. Don't worry so much. We'll check the weather forecast first thing when we get back." Yosuke told the group.

"Yeah, I think Yukiko will be fine for now. You need your rest." You advised.

"B-but I can't turn back now! We've come so far!" "Yukiko's still here! She's all alone… She must be so scared!"

"Then you tell me how much further we gotta go to reach Yukiko-san!" Yosuke asked.

"Do you know Teddie?" You asked and he shook his head.

"I can only analyze one floor up, sorry." He said.

"We don't know what's up ahead. The enemies might be even stronger. If we push ourselves too hard and get wiped out, who'll save Yukiko-san then!? We can't fail, no matter what… Am I wrong?" Yosuke said.

"…Alright. I'm sorry about before… I shouldn't have rushed in like that by myself…" Chie said sighed tiredly.

"It's okay, we understand how you feel." You said smiling.

"No worries. We're definitely gonna save Yukiko-san… Right?" Yosuke said smiling.

"Right!" You and Chie said smiling. Teddie helped Chie to her feet and you supported her on her way back. She seemed to get worse and worse.

"I-I'm feeling even worse than last time I came in here…" She said. "My head feels like it's about to split open… are you guys okay?" You thought for a moment.

"Oh, right! You're not wearing the 'Teddie glasses'!" You said.

"That's right, you're not wearing the glasses." Yosuke said.

"Oh yeah… What's with those glasses? Did your eyesight go bad?" Chie asked. You sweat dropped.

"Not exactly…" You said.

"Man… You didn't notice until now? How panicked were you…?" Yosuke asked.

"Tum de dumm!" Teddie sang waving some classes in her face. "I got a pair ready for Chie-chan, too. Here you go!" You sighed as Chie put them on.

"Whoa! What the-!? This is awesome! It's like the fog doesn't exist!" Chie said as she looked around.

"Why didn't you whip those out earlier if you had them?" You and Yosuke demanded.

"I made them right now! You didn't tell me she was coming! It was all so sadden! I mean, sudden!" Teddie said. You raised an eyebrow. 'Is he still thinking about who he is?' You wondered.

"Huh… so that's the trick. I was wondering how you guys could see where you were going. Hey, is it alright if I keep this?" Chie asked curiously.

"Fo' sho!" Teddie responded and the three of you sweat dropped.

"We'll have to stop here today… But I'll be back with these puppies! You guys better not come here without me, got it!?" Chie said and you and Yoske nodded.

'Yeah, let's all promise each other… Nobody goes in alone. It's way too dangerous. If we don't work together, we won't be able to solve this case or save Yukiko-san… Right?" Yosuke said. _'_I think that was something we could all agree on.' You thought.

"Right." You said.

"Yeah, I agree too. I promise." Chie said.

"Alright, so from tomorrow on, we'll try and come here as much as we can after school… And that includes days off." Yosuke said smiling. He then turned to you for a moment. "Hey… would you mind being our leader?"

"W-wha- Me?" You asked.

"Yeah. You were the first to get this power, and you're way better in a fight than either of us. I think it's bet for all of us if you set the pace of the investigation, and we follow your lead. I'm cool playing second banana." He said.

"I-If you think I'll be a good leader, then I'll do my best." You said.

"I had a feeling you'd say that. I mean, I'm more the advisor type, y'know? An ideas man, not an executive." Yosuke said grinning. You sweat dropped.

"I'm with Yosuke. If you're the one calling the shots, I'd feel a lot more comfortable about this." Chie chimed.

"I'm with Yosuke too. If you're the one calling the shots, my pillow will be a lot more comfortable at night." Teddie said.

"Teddie, would you please stop talking. I'm really on edge right now…" Chie said frustrated. Teddie sweat dropped and pouted. You chuckled petting him. You paused hearing voices again. 'That voice again… It seems our little team was another form of Social Link' You thought.

_"Thou art I… And I am thou…" _

_"Thou hast established a new bond…"_

_"It brings thee closer to the truth…"_

_"Thou shalt be blessed when creating personas of the Fool Arcana…"_

_"Another social link-wait, Fool Arcana!? Is that supposed to be a joke_?!" You spoke to Izanagi.

_"Hm… how interesting…" _He responded.

_"You're unusually quiet…" _You said.

_"You say it as if there's something important I should be saying…"_

_"Is there?"_

_"No. I would have said it if there was." _He said._ "Sometimes I think you do this purpose." _You sweat dropped_._

"Okay. Let's get some rest for today so we're ready for tomorrow on. And don't forget to check the weather forecast. It gets foggy after a lot of rain, so let's keep an eye out. Also, let's make sure we gear up for next time." Yosuke said as the group bid farewell to Teddie and left the TV world.

You walked Chie home, the split up with Yosuke heading to your house. You were sleepy and definitely looking forward to dinner. You walk inside and was happy to see Dojima home as well as Nanako.

"Welcome home!" Nanako said happily. You smiled at her as you sat down with her. "Can we go out to dinner now?" You nodded.

"Out to dinner?" Dojima asked. "I already ordered food, I'm sorry…" Nanako and you pouted.

"Aw… okay…" You and Nanako said sitting down in front of the TV. Dojima watched you two and sighed.

"I said I was sorry…." He said.

"It's okay…" You and Nanako grumbled as the doorbell rang and Dojima got up to go get the food. After returning, the plates were filled and you were all eating together. Strangely there was some tense feelings among you and Dojima, but attempted to ignore them.

"Hey. Mind if I ask something? You aren't getting involved with any strange business, are you…? What happened at the station this afternoon… it's still bothering me. Is there… anything you're not telling me?" Dojima asked you. 'Well I fight the personifications of humanity's dark side inside a TV set in order to save people thrown in by a madman with the help of my friends and our mythological allies. Other than that nothing.' You thought and Izanagi snickered.

"No of course not. Don't worry." You said smiling at him. Dojima didn't seem convinced.

"…Is something bothering you? Believe me, I do feel bad that I've been too caught up with work for us to have time to talk…" He told you.

"It's not like it's out of the ordinary. My parents never had time for me either." You said before you could even realize you said it. You immediately regretted it. You didn't mean those words and you definitely didn't want to say things like that in front of Nanako. Dojima seemed genuinely hurt by what you said, not because he felt responsible, but because he felt bad that you lived in his house and you never spoke to one another.

"What's wrong? Are you fighting…?" Nanako asked worriedly.

"No… We're not having a fight." Dojima said.

"This isn't the police station…" She said frowning. You and Dojima sighed.

"I agreed to look after you. So don't get yourself involved in anything that could get you in trouble. Got that?" Dojima said and you nodded.

"And now, our weather forecast. Due to high-pressure fronts from the west, that sunny spring-like weather will stay with us fro a while longer." The weather lady spoke.

"Is this lady the one who decides the weather?" Nanako asked and you raised an eyebrow. "'Cause when she says that it'll be sunny, it always is…" You chuckled; she's so cute.

"Uh, she's not really deciding it… Never mind." Dojima said unable to come up with a proper explanation. 'The rain's not coming for a while yet. We've still got time…' You thought as you finished eating.

You were frustrated and upset at the fact that Dojima scolded you over such a simple misunderstanding. It was like he suspected you or something! After you ate, you went to your room. You were tired and felt you deserved a rest after the day you'd had. So much for a day off… You changed you clothes and quickly climbed into bed after setting your clock for school in the morning.


	8. Chapter 8

(Sorry this took so long...)

**Date: April 19**

You woke up early again today; you were on a roll with this! You got dressed quickly and made your way down the steps. You were greeted, like everyday, by Dojima and Nanako. This time Dojima had enough time to sit down and eat with you, which you thought was nice. You were still a bit angry at the way Dojima reacted, but you knew he was just worried about you.

Once you finished eating, Dojima said 'goodbye' and left the house and you left with Nanako. It wasn't raining today and you were wondering how Chie was doing. She'd been really upset the day before and so much had happened, you were rather worried. When you reach the 'Yosuke Trashcans' here he came, as always.

"Morning, Yosuke-kun," you greeted kindly.

"Hey, what's up," he greeted sporting his typical grin. The two of you chatted eagerly as you walked into the school building. You took your seat as Yosuke stood beside your desk.

"I wonder how Chie's doing…" He said. "Too much stuff happened yesterday, I hope she's back to her usual self…" You nodded.

"Yeah, me too…" You said. Said girl came wandering in just as you finished speaking with her.

"Oh, mornin'," she greeted with a small smile.

"Are you feeling better?" You asked her curiously. You didn't want to push her; especially if she wasn't feeling well.

"Yep," She said happily. "Um… Thanks for everything yesterday. It's kind of embarrassing, ya know? You two were there to see my hidden feelings and all…"

"Don't sweat it." Yosuke replied.

"The same thing happened to Yosuke, right? Soooo… what was it like?" Chie pressed curiously.

"Huh? Uhhh, how should I put this…" Yosuke said. "Oh, I nearly forgot! None of that happened when yours awakened, huh? Hmmm, could that be because you've got nothing to hide?" He quickly changed the subject.

"I know… I've been thinking about that a lot lately…" You said.

"Oh? So nothing happened for you?" Chie asked curiously. "I gotta agree that you seem like a pretty open person. There's a funny air about you… I dunno, I guess that's what draws people to you, or something like that." You raised an eyebrow.

"_Chie's got a really funny way of saying nice things about people…" _Izanagi said.

"_Seriously…"_ You replied.

"Was that… Supposed to be a compliment?" You asked with a tiny smirk. Chie chuckled.

"Haha, yep, it's a compliment." Chie said with a smirk.

"Uh… if you say so…" Yosuke said and the three of you shared a laugh.

"Anyways, what's most important right now is to rescue Yukiko. I'm dead set on coming. Remember… You promised." She said frowning and Yosuke and you nodded.

"Yes of course, we promised." You said. The warning bell signaled as Yosuke slightly panicked.

"Oh crap, I still haven't gone to the bathroom!" He said racing off to go use the restroom. You sweat dropped. 'Oh Yosuke-kun…' You thought. After he was out of sight, Chie turned her attention to you.

"Um… hey, _..." She started shifting uncomfortably. "Th-Thanks for saving me… Yosuke's cool and all, but… There really is something different about you. I feel like you won't let me down…" You sense Chie's gratitude to you… You feel a faint bond forming between you and Chie…

"_Thou art I…. And I am thou…"_

"_Thou hast established a new bond…"_

"_It brings thee closer to the truth…"_

"_Thou shalt be blessed when creating personas of the Chariot Arcana..."_

"_Chariot Arcana, huh? I can see that." Izanagi said. _

"We have to be careful of the fog that sets in after the rain, right? Let's save her before that happens!" Chie said eagerly.

"Of course!" You said smiling, she smiled back.

After school, you were approached by two boys, one seemed a bit nervous while the other seemed rather nonchalant.

"Hey, _-chan, you busy?" One of the boys asked. He had short deep blue hair and a calm grin.

"No, is there something you needed?" You asked them. Yosuke stood next to your desk looking at them curiously.

"I'm Kou and this is Daisuke. I know you're new and all, but I could really use your help. See the basketball team needs a manager, ya know someone to keep track of our games and stuff and I was hoping… maybe you could help me out?" He asked. You blinked.

"Well… I'm not always free after school so-"

"That's okay, you don't have to show up that often. If anything comes up I'll call you, what's your number?" Kou requested. You blinked rapidly.

"_How bold…" _You muttered.

"_This boy is so straight forward, while the other can't even look at you without blushing; some wing-man."_ Izanagi said.

"_What do you think I should do?"_ You asked.

"_Agree, it sounds like fun." _

"_Well… okay."_ You said.

"Sure, okay," you said. Kou grinned and the other boy, Daisuke blinked.

"You… seriously agreed…?" He and Yosuke asked.

"I bet getting her number was all you wanted." Yosuke teased Kou and he rolled his eyes.

"Na, it was brought up that we needed a manager and it just so happened that I thought _-chan would be a nice fit." He defended. "Besides, so what of I want her number? It's no secret that just about every guy here wants it; including you." Yosuke's face flushed.

"_Told you he asked for your number for other reasons besides the case_." Izanagi said smirking. You just sighed.

"T-that's not true." He attempted to defend as you wrote your number down on a piece of paper for Kou. Kou happily took it and immediately put the number in his phone.

"You want it Daisuke?" He asked bluntly, Yosuke frowned slightly. Daisuke blushed.

"D-dude, she didn't give the number to me, that's rude." He said. "Plus, I'm not even on the basketball team, so why would I need it…?"

"'Cause you want it, just like I do, obviously."

"T-that's- shut up man."

"You can have to too, if you want. I assumed it was for both of you anyway." You said shrugging. Kou grinned.

"Yeah, we're a package deal." He said and you and Yosuke sweat dropped.

"Yeah, a packaged she never asked for…" Yosuke muttered.

"Jealous?" Kou teased Yosuke who scoffed.

"No, I already have her number…" He said proudly.

"Oh? Aren't you proud. That's kinda funny." He said.

"W-well anyway… we should get going… see you later, _-chan, Yosuke." Daisuke said walking toward the door.

"Yeah, I'll call you." Kou said winking. Yosuke rolled his eyes and you just nodded waving him off.

"Man, Kou is so straight forward. How can you put up with that like it's okay?" Yosuke asked you.

"He was just kidding. It'd be different if he really meant it." You said.

"Guys… I'm really worried about Yukiko… can we go today?" Chie asked approaching the two of you.

"Yeah, we were actually just about to come get you when Kou and Daisuke came over to talk to _." He said. Chie nodded.

"Okay, let's go."

The three of you made your way inside of the TV World. (I hate how they never give it an official name. :/) Teddie was already waiting inside.

"Sensei, Chie-chan, Yosuke!" He greeted happily. He waddled over to the three of you before leading you off to see Yukiko. You put your glasses on as you followed him to the castle. Teddie had the amazing ability to teleport you into rooms you'd already been in, so you were able to go right to the second floor this time.

"Sensei, can I bother you for a second? The road here seems different from yesterday, so this place might get pretty tricky… I'll do my best to remember where we walked, so try not to get lost, Sensei. Anyways, I don't sense anyone around this area. If you go further ahead, we might be able to find something. Be careful and move on." Teddie said and you nodded. 'As if the Shadows weren't bad enough, it seemed this place's layout wasn't even fixed.' You thought.

The group proceeded further toward the large double doors. As you attempted to go in Teddie immediately stopped you.

"Wait sensei! There's something in that room!" He said and you nodded. The four of you mentally prepared yourself for what was to come. You carefully opened the door and stepped inside. You spotted Yukiko standing in the middle of the room.

"Yukiko….?" Chie started.

"Yukiko-san, are you alright?!" Yosuke called. There was no response from said girl as she faced away from the group.

"Yukiko… what's wrong?" Chie asked.

Huh? Oh my! Special guests? I wonder how they'll play into all this!" Yukiko? Started. "Things are really heating up! Okie-dokie! I'm going back to the hunt for my Prince Charming! Ohhh, where could he be…? This place is huge! It's sooo exciting, but it makes it so hard to find him! Ooh! Maybe he's playing hide-and-seek in the fog! Ready or not, here I come! Let's go further in then, shall we!?" When she finished speaking, something strange appeared before her as if she were on some weird TV show.

"Wh-What the hell is this!?" Yosuke asked.

"You're… You're not Yukiko… Who are you!?" Chie demanded. The strange creature chuckled.

"What're you talking about? I'm Yukiko… and Yukiko is me." It said.

"No! Don't tell me, are you-!?" Chie said confirming everyone's suspicions. "Where's the real Yukiko!?" As she spoke strange voices were heard around the castle.

"What's with these voices…!?" You and Yosuke asked. 'We really need to stop saying things at the same time…' You thought.

"The Shadows are getting agitated!" Teddie answered.

"Well, I'm off again!" Shadow Yukiko said. "Heehee! You'd better be waiting with bells on, my dear Prince!" She took off further into the castle with a distraught Chie close behind.

"Hey, wait!" Chie called. You and Yosuke effectively grabbed her collar holding her back. "That clearly wasn't the real Yukiko. It had to be…"

"I think it was. It must have been the other part of herself." Teddie said.

"So it's just like what happened to us…" Yosuke said. 'Teddie does make some good points every now and then.' You thought.

"But I don't think she was excited for nothing," Teddie started. "The real Yukiko wants to show us something. I can feel it. It's hard to explain… It seems like she has a strong connection to this castle. This is a lot more dangerous than I thought!" Chie's alarm about the words immediately kicked in and she forced the group to carry on and quickly.

You breezed through the next few floors quickly. The fights were tough, but the three of you and Teddie worked very well together.

"Is anyone tired?" You asked being sure to make sure everyone is okay.

"I'm just fine! Let's keep going!" Chie said bursting through a door before you or Yosuke even had a chance to stop her. You finally reached the eighth floor and were presented by large doors.

As the group piled in, you saw Yukiko in her kimono and her shadow standing before her with a small frown. Yukiko looked exhausted.

"Yukiko!" Chie called.

"I knew it… There's two of them." Yosuke said. You nodded.

"We have to save her." You said.

"Oh? Oooooh, what's this?Three princes are here to see me!? My my! Are you the surprise guests who came in late? Awwwww… I wish I'd gotten a better look at you! My, it's getting crowded here. Why don't you and I go somewhere else…? A land far, far away, where no one knows me. If you're my Prince, you'd take me there, won't you? C'mon… pretty please?" Shadow Yukiko exclaimed.

"Oooh. Is this "scoring a hot stud"!?" Teddie questioned.

"Three princes…? Wait, does that include us, too…?" Chie asked looking at you.

"Um…." You started.

"Duh! The third one's gotta be me!" Teddie said and you and Yosuke sweat dropped.

"I seriously doubt that…" Yosuke said.

"Chie… yes she's my prince," Shadow Yukiko said. She always leads the way… Chie's a strong Prince… Or at least, she WAS."

"Was…?" Chie asked curiously.

"When it comes down to it, Chie's just not good enough! She can't take me away from here! She can't save me!" It continued.

"Yukiko…" Chie said. The real Yukiko had heard enough. In retrospect this was a bad sort of turning point in the conversation.

"S-stop…" Yukiko begged it.

"Historic inn? Manager training!? I'm sick of all these things chaining me down!  
I never asked to be born here! Everything's decided for me! From how I live, to where I die! I'm so sick of it! To hell with it all!" Shadow Yukiko expressed.

"That's not true…" Yukiko said frowning.

"I just want to go somewhere far away… Anywhere but here… Someone, please take me away… I can't leave here on my own… I'm completely useless…" Shadow Yukiko relentlessly continued.

"Stop… Please stop…" Yukiko begged it.

"I have no hope if I stay, and no courage to leave… So I sit on my ass hoping that someday my Prince will come! I don't care where we go! Anywhere's fine! As long as it's not here, I don't give a damn! Historical tradition? Pride of the town? What a bunch of bullshit!" Shadow Yukiko pressed.

"How dare you?" Yukiko asked, now feeling a little angrier.

"That's how I really feel." Shadow Yukiko said. "Isn't that right… me!?"

"N-No…" Yukiko said.

"Stop! Don't say it!" Yosuke said, but his word fell of deaf ears.

"No! You're not me!" Yukiko yelled at her shadow. Shadow Yukiko laughed manically.

"Aaaah! This feels wonderful! It's building… more and more… If this keeps up… I'll… I'll…! Ahaha! Ahahahahahaha!" She said as the shadow drew more and more power to itself. Yukiko's shadow took the form of a caged bird summoning a knight-like prince to her aid.

"_Heyy, caged bird because she feels like there's no way out and she's stuck in this way of life forever, ha! So cliché!"_ Izanagi said giggling. You rolled your eyes.

"_Izanagi…"_ You grumbled.

"…_Sorry…"_

"Aagh!" Yukiko said as she fell to the ground.

"Yukiko!" Chie called worriedly.

"We have to stop it! That girls in danger!" Teddie said worriedly.

"We know!" Yosuke said.

"Everyone stay focused." You said.

"It's all right, Yukiko… Just hang in there! We'll save you!" Chie said.

"I am a shadow… the true self…" Shadow Yukiko said. "Now, my Prince… Why don't we dance and make merry together?" She said to the small prince at her side.

"Hang in there, Yukiko… I'm right here for you!" Chie said worriedly.

"Oh really…? Then I'll make sure to give you plenty to deal with!" Yukiko's shadow said smirking.

Yukiko's shadow was tougher than any of the other shadows you'd faced so far. She was relentless when attacking Chie's weakness and didn't have a weakness herself. Her prince healed her and had to be disposed of quickly, luckily it was weak against ice. After a long tiresome battle, she was defeated and Yukiko was safe… for now.

She slowly got up with Chie's help. "Yukiko! Yukiko, are you hurt…!?" She asked her. Yukiko didn't answer, instead she turned her attention to her shadow standing in the room.

"No… I'm not-" Yukiko tried to convince herself and everyone else.

"We understand. You're not the only one like that, Yukiko-san." Yosuke said. "Everyone has something they can't show to other people, or don't want to admit to themselves…" Yukiko still seemed defiant to admit it.

"Yukiko… I'm sorry." Chie said looking down. "I was so self-centered that… I never understood what you were going through… I'm your friend, and I still… Oh, I'm so sorry…"

"Chie…" Yukiko muttered looking at her.

"I was always jealous of you, Yukiko. You had everything that I didn't… That jealousy was like a wall, and I was so lonely…!" Chie continued. "I wanted you to need me… But it was me who needed you. I can't do anything right on my own… I've caused so much trouble for Yosuke and the others. If you weren't by my side, I… I wouldn't know what to do…" You hoped Chie's confession would help Yukiko come to par with her emotions.

"Chie… I never saw the real you either… I was too busy trying to find an easy way out. "I want to run away…" "I want someone to save me…" You're right, those feelings are part of me, too." Yukiko said. She walked over to her shadow as it looked at her. "I understand now… You're me." The strength of heart required to face oneself has been made manifest… And thus, Yukiko's persona was born!

"_Her Persona is Konohana Sakuya. She's a goddess of life, and her symbol is the sakura blossom." _Izanagi explained.

"Yukiko!" Chie said worriedly as Yukiko started to fall.

"Are you okay?" Yosuke asked.

"Yes, I'm just a little tired… You all came to rescue me…?" Yukiko asked with a gentle smile.

"Of course!" Chie and you said.

"Thank you…" Yukiko said smiling.

"Don't even mention it. I'm just so glad you're safe…" Chie said.

"Hehe… Right on." Yosuke said proudly.

"So, who threw you in?" Teddie asked her bluntly. The attention was brought back to Yukiko then.

"Huh…? Who are you? Rather… What are you?" She asked Teddie.

"I'm Teddie! So, who threw you in?"

"I don't know… I think… someone called my name… But my memory's a blur. I can't remember who it was… I'm sorry, um… Teddie."

"No new clues…"

"Not necessarily. Now we know for sure that someone threw Yukiko-san in here." Yosuke said and you nodded.

"Now we know there IS a murderer out there." You said.

"Hrmm… Then it really isn't you guys…" Teddie said.

"_I shouldn't have been surprised that Teddie still didn't trust us." You grumbled._

"_Eh, what can you do?" Izanagi said._

"You seriously still suspected us?!" You said frowning.

"I-I always believed it wasn't you guys!" Teddie insisted.

"You little…! You're one lying sack of honey…" Yosuke said frowning and you nodded.

"Anyways, let's hurry back home, Yukiko looks exhausted… Thanks again, Teddie!" Chie said leading Yukiko out and the rest of you followed.

"Huh? Wait, you're leaving me here?" Teddie asked sadly. You raised an eyebrow.

"Leaving you? What're you talking about? You live here." Yosuke said.

"Well… yeah, but…" Teddie started.

"Are you… lonely Teddie?" You asked.

"I'm sorry, Teddie. I promise to come again… So be a good boy and wait here until then." Yukiko said petting him kindly. You nodded petting him also. It didn't take long for Chie to join in too. Yosuke rolled his eyes.

"My, it's getting crowded here. Why don't we… go somewhere else…?  
C'mon… Pretty please?" Teddie said reaching for the three of you. Yosuke effectively kicked him away.

"Gah… You're giving me the creeps! That's it, you're stuck here for the rest of your life!" Yosuke said and he sulked as everyone started for the exit.

You arrived back at Junes and sat down in the food court to give Yukiko a chance to relax in an environment better for her. Hoping that her memory had a chance to sink in after getting out of that oppressive atmosphere, you asked her again if she was able to remember anything about her kidnapping.

"I'm sorry, but… I don't remember anything…" Yukiko said looking down at her feet with a small guilty frown.

"Well, no worries! You're safe, and that's more than enough." Chie said.

"But there's no mistake that Yukiko-san was… um… Attacked… the same way as the last two victims." Yosuke said. "And I think the one we saw on the Midnight Channel wasn't the real Yukiko-san, but her Shadow. Maybe the things Yukiko-san was suppressing in this world took form in the TV…?" You raised an eyebrow at the thought.

"You know, Teddie was saying something like that…" Chie said thoughtfully.

"Awww, it's no use. I'm just going round and round in circles. What kinda person could be doing this?" Yosuke said and the three of you sigh. You took a glance at Yukiko seeing that she seemed to be more and more exhausted by the second.

"Let's think it over and talk about it later," you said.

"Yeah, Yukiko looks exhausted!" Chie said. You and Yosuke said goodbye to Chie as she walked Yukiko home and then the two of separated to go to your own homes.

Once you arrived, you were greeted by a happy Nanako, who'd done some shopping for you today.

"I… um… wanted something spicy tonight, so… I went shopping." She said. "Can you… make something?" She looked at you a bit hopefully.

"Sure, Nanako! Want to help?" You said with a smile.

"I can? Really? Okay!" She said happily. It didn't take long to make dinner and you two sat down to eat it.

"I'm home!" Dojima called as he entered the house. Nanako happily jumped to her feet.

"He's home!" She said before pausing. "Um… hello…" You raised an eyebrow as you looked toward the door. The strange detective that gave you the information about Yukiko stopped by with Dojima.

"Hi there." He greeted, you believed his name was… Adachi?

"We got off work at the same time, so I'm giving him a right back to his place. And I thought we might as well swing by." Dojima said and you nodded a bit.

"Nice to meet ya. I'm Adachi, the guy who's been your dad's slave since spring." Adachi said chuckling. You sweat dropped.

"I can still work you harder, you know." Dojima said frowning as he walked in.

"Haha, good one, Sir! Ha… ha…" Adachi answered. "Oh, I almost forgot! You're friends with Yukiko Amagi, right? They found her safe and sound! Tell all your friends at school!" You smiled slightly deciding to play it cool and pretend not to know.

"That's such a relief, I was really getting worried." You said smiling a bit as you got up to fix plates for Dojima and Adachi. Adachi smiled down at you with a strange look in his eyes.

"Yeah, for us on the force too. But this doesn't mean the case is closed, though.  
We were just questioning Ms. Amagi, but she says she doesn't remember anything that happened while she was missing. And we can't figure out her whereabouts during the missing period, either. It's like she really disappeared. It's all pretty fishy, if you ask me… Like there's something else going on…" Adachi speculated. It worried you that they still seemed to suspect Yukiko. Dojima effectively smacked Adachi to keep him from continuing. "Ow!" He muttered.

"Stop blabbering, dumbass!" Dojima scolded. Adachi rubbed his head.

"S-Sorry…" He muttered.

"Ignore him. He's just spouting some wild fantasy." Dojima said waving his hand dismissively.

"You don't think Yukiko is really involved do you?" You asked with a small frown. Dojima shook his head.

"No, of course not." He said, but you didn't believe him. You wanted to press him more for answers, but Nanako was here and it'd just make you look more suspicious.

"I'm hungry." Nanako said pouting. You had set the plates and sat them down on the table.

"Hey, you're right. My stomach's growling too." Dojima said, his peaceful smile returning. It made you smile also.

"Hahaha, so you do have a softer side around Nanako-chan, Sir." Adachi said effectively getting him scolded again.

"Shut up and siddown… And wash those hands first!" Dojima said. "Hm, I should do the same…"

"_This guy sure can't keep his mouth shut…"_ Izanagi speculated.

"_You're telling me…"_ You replied.

"_Anyway, while we're no closer to the killer, but we did manage to save Yukiko at least. I want to hope she was the last victim, but somehow I know that's just not going to be the case…" You said._

"_Obviously not. These kidnappings won't just stop. The killer will probably be more into it now that someone managed to save one of his victims." _

"_Oh man you're probably right! But… we can't just not save people…"_

"_Don't worry about it, just do what you always do and anyone thrown in that TV with be just fine."_

"_I hope you're right, Izanagi…" _You said_. _

"_Don't worry! I'm ALWAYS right." _You just rolled your eyes.

After eating dinner with everyone, Dojima put Nanako to bed and Adachi was helping you clean up in the kitchen.

"Ya know, Dojima-san praises you a lot," he said smiling over at you. You blinked, not expecting Dojima to talk about you to his co-workers.

"Really?" You asked smiling a bit.

"Yeah, he always talks about how grateful he is that you help Nanako-chan out so much and you're able to cook these amazing meals!" He said. "I have to admit, at first, I thought he was over-exaggerating, but after I tasted it, man, it's like Heaven in my mouth! You're amazing." You blushed lightly at the compliment.

"Thank you, Adachi-san, I'm really glad you like it." You said and he smiled at you, that strange smile he seemed to be giving you the whole time he was here. It wasn't a creepy smile, but it was strange. You couldn't quite explain it.

"Well, I should probably get going, cook for me some other time, okay?" He said winking at you before making his way to the door, putting on his shoes and leaving. You blinked before shaking your head of any possible thoughts and going up to your room. It didn't take you long to fall asleep, since you were so tired from your long exploration of the TV world today.

__


	9. Chapter 9

**Date: April 20**

You woke up in a very pleasant mood as you got ready for class. You paused hearing your phone ringing. You looked at it seeing a strange number, but you decided to answer anyway.

"Hello…" The voice said, they sounded… strangely familiar. "I realize this is sudden, but… It's Margaret. We met at the Velvet Room the other day. There is one important point I forgot to warn you about, so I thought it best to contact you immediately-" She started.

"Huh? Is that _-chan? Tell her I said hi!" Takeshi said.

"Takeshi please-"

"Hey _-chan! Heeeyyyy!" He called. You and Izanagi sweat dropped. Margaret sighed.

"As I was saying… Going to save your friends is a selfless and noble deed… By all means, we encourage and support you in regards to this matter. But to proceed to hastily in that quest will mean facing one battle after the next. Though you may be pressed for time, devoting yourself to battles will not quench your heart's yearnings. The bonds created through Social Links are another important means of strengthening the powers of your Persona… Do not hasten heedlessly through your days, and remember the importance of moving at a sustainable pace. Please remember that. Well then, if you'll excuse me…" She said as she hung up.

You nodded slightly and thoughtfully as you made your way to school. '_She's probably right. This has already been getting harder, and if what I do outside the TV is just as important to becoming stronger I can't neglect it.' _You thought. Izanagi seemed to agree. As you neared the 'Yosuke trashcans' you overhead two girls talking among themselves,

"The sports clubs are accepting applications today! Which one should I join?" The shorter haired girl asked her friend.

**"**Weren't you asking the same thing last year? And the year before that?" The other girl responded.

**"**Was I? Well, whatever. I shouldn't join a sports team. I need to focus on my entrance exams this year! I need to choose which shrine to wish for luck at with my mother so I can pass the exams. I don't want to go to the shrine near the shopping district, 'cuz it's all shady and creepy, you know…? Not only that, but I heard a rumor that there's something living in that shrine!…I wonder if it's true…" She replied.

"I_'ve been feeling how out of shape I got last year a lot in the TV world. Maybe I should join a sports team…?" _You thought.

_"Seriously, you need to get rid of all that unneeded body fat." _Izanagi teased.

_"Wha- are you calling me fat?!" _You demanded_._

_"No, if I called you fat, then I'd be calling me fat, since I'm you, and I'm not fat. I'm flawless." _You sweat dropped at Izanagi's response and continued walking. As you neared the trashcans where you typically met up with Yosuke, you saw him already there obviously waiting for someone. As you got closer, you overhead him muttering a bit to himself,

"Come on man, why am I so nervous? We hang out all the time it's not like it's a date…" He muttered. "I mean, we're just gonna go get something to eat and maybe go shopping in the shopping district or- aw shit this DOES sounds like a date- shut up, Jiraya!"

"Yosuke-kun?" You said as you approached him. Said male froze as he looked you like a deer in headlights.

"_! Hey!" He said chuckling nervously.

"Is… everything okay?" You asked him and he nodded frantically.

"O-oh course, hehe! Nothing wrong here." He said quickly. You raised an eyebrow, but nodded.

"Okay… if you say so…" You said. The two of you made your way into school as Yosuke kept muttering to himself and stole glances in your direction. You simply pretended not to see it, allowing him to get his thoughts together and tell you himself.

**Lunchtime**

Chie had taken the day off to look after Yukiko, so it was just you and Yosuke during lunch. You sat down with the dinner you'd made last night as your lunch today. You glanced at Yosuke who seemed to be staring at you… again.

"Yes, Yosuke-kun?" You pressed waiting for him to say something.

"H-huh-uh-nothing!" He said shoving his mouth full of food. You sighed inwardly and Izanagi muttered something about him being a coward. After about ten minutes of silence, Yosuke finally started to speak.

"So, uh, are you… doing anything after school?" He asked.

"After school? I was going to see if there were any sports I'd be interested in." You said. Yosuke looked a bit disappointed.

"Why?" You asked him.

"Oh! Um… I just wanted to know if you wanted to hang out." He said shrugging. You blinked.

"Well… If you feel like waiting, we can go after I check out the sports." You told him.

"Heyy, no fair!" Someone called from the doorway.

"You shouldn't barge in like that, Kou…" Another voice said and you immediately knew who it was.

"Kou-kun, Daisuke-kun, did you need something?" You asked the two.

"You can't join a sport! You promised to help me!" Kou insisted plopping down in Chie's typical seat.

"Kou-kun, I have every right to join a sport as you do." You said. He pouted.

"But-"

"No buts or I wont help you and I'll simply play a sport." You said waving your finger dismissively at him. He sulked, but nodded. Daisuke stared wide-eyed at you.

"How-how did you do that? He's suddenly so… submissive." The other male said. Yosuke burst into a fit of laughter.

"Submissive my ass!" Kou defended. You rolled your eyes as you continued eating your lunch.

The three were very entertaining as they spoke about various things and teased and joked with one another. Even Daisuke had a few things to say. And of course, you couldn't be left out, so they took turns picking on you as well. Never-the-less, lunch had flown by much too quickly and before you knew it, school had ended.

"Hey, _, do you know your way around? I can show you the faculty office." Kou offered. You'd already known where it was, but figured you'd humor the male.

"That'd be great, thanks Kou-kun." You said, said man grinned in response draping an arm lazily across your shoulders and lead you off toward the faculty office.

Once inside, you were "greeted" by mr. Mooroka who seemed to be in his constant bad mood.

"Yeah, what do you want?" He asked giving you a very wary look. Kou had removed his arm from around you the minute he saw the man.

"I… wanted to know about the sports teams…" You said.

"Trying to break a youthful sweat are you?" He asked you with a lazy smirk. You and Kou sweat dropped.

"…You can join either the volleyball club or the tennis club. After leaving the faculty office, make a left, and go through the exit to get to where the sports clubs meet! By the way, club days are Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday! Sports clubs don't meet on rainy days! Got it!?" He said and you nodded. You quickly excused yourself, not wanting to talk to the man for another second.

"So, which one are you thinking about joining?" Kou asked as he walked with you.

"Mm… I was thinking -." You said. It was a sport you enjoyed and plus the uniforms were cute. Win-win, right? Kou seemed to like your choice and he nodded.

"Cool, come on, I'll show you where it is." He said, even thought Mooroka had told you how to get there, you still accepted the male's offer.

Once there, you peeked inside to watch the - team practice. Kou smirked shoving you inside and following right after you. You were greeted by the gym teacher who briefed you on what the team did and when you were supposed to be there. He lead you to the group of girls huddled together talking.

"Alright ladies, listen up, you've got a new teammate! You all know _ _, right?" He said. "She's from the city, so I'm sure she's got some moves she's just waiting to show off! I'd say this season is in the bag! I'm even thinking about making her captain!" You sweat dropped, seriously? He'd never even seen you play. You can hear the other players whispering…

**"**The city, huh? I bet she played for some big team back home… Tch, look at her. City slicker… Probably thinks she's better than us…" She muttered. You blinked feeling very taken aback by this. Kou seemed to want to say something, but was allowing you to fight your own battles, which you appreciated.

"Yeah, we're just a bunch of hicks to her…" The girl beside her muttered.

**"**Here, why don't you say something to the team?" The gym teacher said grinning. You figured this was a good time as any to make a nice impression. You didn't want to join a team where everyone disliked you.

"Hi, I'm _ _. I know I've just arrived, but I hope we can all get along and have some fun. I haven't played much before, so I'm sorry if I'm not all that talented." You lied to them about not playing much before and Kou seemed to catch onto the lie. The other girls seemed to feel a bit superior now, but they still didn't seem very friendly. The gym teacher sent the girls off to run laps as one girl stayed behind.

"Um… hello…" She greeted kindly. Kou didn't even seem to notice the girl.

"Come on, let's get going, _. These girls are a bunch of bitches." He said. You ignored him.

"Hi," you said smiling at the girl as she shifted nervously.

"I-I'm sorry about them… t-they're just upset, because our team funds were cut… We wont be able to compete this year because of it…" She said shifting slightly on her feet.

"Hm…" You started.

"Yeah so? Why do they have to take that out on _?" Kou said with a frown. The girl seemed intimidated by Kou and you elbowed him.

"Kou… stop." You said and he grumbled.

"Well… there has to be something we can do." You said.

"Yeah right, we've already tried talking to the principle. He just blows us off." One of the girls said crossing her arms over her chest as the team seemed to be done their laps and were now crowded around the timid girl.

"What if we raised the money ourselves?" You said.

"How are we supposed to do that?" Another girl asked.

"Fundraiser perhaps?" You suggested.

"What like a bake sale or something?" She questioned.

"Yeah, we could do that, or we could plan a school party and the funds would go to the - team. As long as it gets approved by the principle, we should be able to do anything." You said. The girls seemed to like your idea and for a short moment seemed to be a bit hopeful.

"Yeah, but how are we supposed to get THAT much money by January?" Another girl said.

"How much do we need?" You asked. The girls look among themselves before the timid girl handed you a piece of paper, which she had seemed to go get while you were talking and no one noticed. You paused and Kou looked over your shoulder.

"Damn, that's a lot of zeros…" He muttered and you nodded.

"See! It's hopeless…" Once of the girls said.

"Well… it'll be a lot of work, but I'm sure we can do it!" You insisted. "But we'll all have to pitch in."

"I have a job, some of my paycheck can go toward it." One of the girls suggested.

"Yeah mine too!"

"Hey maybe we could have a car wash or a cook out or something?"

"Yeah! I can bake pretty well!"

"Yeah, but where are we gonna sell this stuff? That Shopping District has been pretty bare lately."

"Hey, _-chan, Yosuke's your boyfriend, right? Can't you get him to sell some of our stuff at Junes?" Another girl asked you. Kou looked at you with a strange expression.

"Yosuke-kun isn't my boyfriend, but I can still ask him. I'm sure his father wouldn't mind." You said. Kou seemed to relax a bit with the fact that you and Yosuke weren't together. "That and I think if we started doing some things in the Shopping District, it might just bring some business back. We can talk to the store owners and see if they'll pitch in."

The girls seemed to be very excited about your plans and eager to try them out. The group exchanged numbers with you, so you could arrange a time to all get together and figure out what you were going to do. Afterward, you left the - meeting place and went to grab your briefcase from your classroom. As you neared the door Kou decided to speak.

"So, you busy? Let's meet up with Daisuke and get something to eat." He suggested wearing his typical smirk.

"Sorry, Kou-kun, but I have plans with Yosuke-kun, remember?" You said. Kou pouted as you opened the door to the classroom.

"Aw, come on, you're always hanging out with him." Kou complained shooting Yosuke dirty looks. Yosuke had waited for you in the classroom while you'd been with the sports team. Yosuke smirked in response to the male's looks before waving 'goodbye' to him. Kou huffed, but said goodbye to you and walked off to meet up with Daisuke.

"Sorry about the wait, Yosuke-kun," you said smiling slightly. He shook his head.

"No big deal." He said walking with you out of class.

"So how did it go?" He asked and you explained the situation with him. He looked over the paper and blinked at the amount needed.

"Damn! But I guess if you include bus fairs and stuff it would be a lot."

"Yeah, but we're gonna try to raise the money…" You said. Yosuke chuckled.

"You're sure good at getting suckered into doing stuff." He teased and you rolled your eyes.

"Shut up!" You grumbled.

"Now is that any way to talk to the only person that could possibly convince the manager to allow you to sell your stuff at Junes?" The male teased and you glared.

"Not cool, Yosuke-kun," you said pouting and he laughed.

"Na, I'm just kidding. I'll help you out. I DO still owe you after all." He said chuckling. You nodded crossing your arms over your chest as you walked outside. You overheard Daisuke and Kou talking a bit off to the side.

"She turn you down man?" Daisuke asked.

"No, well… sorta. I mean, I didn't exactly ask her out, I just asked if she wanted to hang out and she didn't really turn me down, she just said she'd promised to hang with Yosuke." Kou replied.

"Dude, she rejected you politely. It's cool, it happens to everyone."

"Wha- she didn't reject me!"

"She obviously did, if she wasn't here."

"Shut up! She was just busy!"

"Whatever makes you feel better man." Daisuke said.

"Besides, I found out something interesting, her and Yosuke AREN'T dating." Kou said.

"You were still gonna try even if they were? That's low man."

"Wha- no! I asked AFTER I found out! What kinda guy do you think I am? I know my boundaries. Yosuke's a pretty cool guy, I wouldn't do something like that to him." Kou pouted a bit and Daisuke didn't look very convinced.

"Regardless, don't act like I'm not gonna keep trying." Kou said sporting his usual smirk. Daisuke sighed as the two walked off. Yosuke, who also seemed to be eavesdropping, looked over at you.

"Man, he was really asking you out." Yosuke said. You blinked.

"He asked if I wanted to hang out with him AND Daisuke-kun, what kinda date is that?" You asked and Yosuke laughed.

"Aw come on, those two are a package deal. They're always together. Cut the guy some slack." Yosuke said. You shrugged.

"I didn't think he was asking me out on a date, I just assumed he wanted to hang out; regardless, it wouldn't have changed my answer. I already had plans." You said. Yosuke grinned in response.

"Yeah, I would've been sad if you cancelled." He teased as the two of you continued to walk out of the school district.

"But damn, a lot of people are starting to think we're a couple. After school, some first year came up to me saying Kou was moving in on you in the hall." Yosuke told you. "He kept talking about how he had his arm around you and stuff. I just told him we weren't dating and that was none of my business." You laughed.

"Yeah, all of the girls in the - team thought we were a couple too." You said.

"Man, just because I walk with you to school the first day. Rumors are crazy." He said and you nodded.

You walked with Yosuke to the Shopping District. He invited you to try the steak croquettes at Souzai Daigaku. You remember Chie offering you one when you first arrived.

"Sticking chunks of steak in croquettes… Man, this really is the country, huh?  
Well, it is good… though it's tough. Chie called this stuff "tender and juicy"… What kinda teeth does she have…?" Yosuke said as he ate. You chuckled, she'd told you the same thing.

"Seriously, these are so tough." You said. "But they're pretty good." Yosuke nodded in agreement. Two ladies walked passed you as you two talked among yourselves.

"He's from Junes, YasogamiHigh School, right?" One of the ladies said. They had to known they were close enough to be heard. Perhaps they just didn't care?

"His classmate… Sato-san…? Went out of business…" The other woman added.

"This shopping district could disappear, and yet…" The woman said. You frowned and Yosuke sighed.

"Sorry about that. You know me, I'm infamous around here." Yosuke said chuckling slightly, as if he wasn't bothered by it.

"It's must be hard to deal with all of that…" You commented feeling a bit bad for your friend.

"Nahhh, it's not really. It's mainly my parents; I'm not personally involved. Anyways, there's nothing I can do about it." Yosuke said shrugging. "I don't think there's anyone in Inaba who doesn't know me, at school or around town… Not that I mind, but… It sucks that I always gotta mind my manners." You felt you understood Yosuke a bit more. You blinked rapidly as you realized you'd gained another rank in your social link with Yosuke.

"_This feels slightly different than establishing a new link," _you thought.

_"That's because it IS different." _Izanagi said._ "Not only did you gain new power, but your friendship benefited from this as well." _

"Still, this croquette is damn good, huh?" Yosuke asked. "I'm gonna have another. You want one too, right?" You blinked.

"But I've already eaten four!" You said and he laughed.

"Well one more wont kill ya," he said and you sighed. 'My poor tummy…' You thought and Izanagi snickered.

You hung out and joked around with Yosuke for a bit longer before he walked you home. Dojima wasn't home again, but you and Nanako had fun making dinner together, then watched TV as usual. Afterward, you left to go upstairs and did some studying before going to bed.


	10. Chapter 10

**Date: April 21**

You woke up groggily and shut your alarm clock off. Studying last night resulted in you going to sleep late and you were still tired. You were tempted to sleep for another few minutes, before Nanako gently knocked on your door.

"Breakfast is ready…" She said quietly and you knew you had to get up. Today was Thursday, so you could always go to – practice today, then you remembered that you promised to help Kou with his basketball team. You might as well help him out today. You got dressed, then made your way down the steps. Dojima wasn't there, as usual, and Nanako greeted you kindly with a plate of food and a small lunchbox with yesterday's dinner in it. You thanked her kindly and sat down to eat. You felt your phone vibrate in your pocket and opened it up.

_"Hey, It's Kou! Practice is today, you coming?" It read. _You chuckled, you'd already planned to help the boy it was almost weird that he seemed to text you right at that moment.

_"Sure Kou-kun, I'll be there." You replied._

_"Promise…? No running off with Yosuke?" _He asked and you chuckled, sometimes he was like a child; it was kinda cute.

_"I promise. I wont 'run off' with Yosuke-kun." You answered. _

_"Great! See you then!" _

Breakfast went by quickly as Nanako talked about how she got an A on her project and a few other things she'd done in school. As you made your way toward the door, you saw that it was raining. A bit of worry set in the pit of your stomach, but you tried to convince yourself that you'd rescued Yukiko and everything would be fine. You grabbed your umbrella and made your way toward Yasogami High.

"The weather lady said it's not going to rain all day, I think I'm going to do some laundry when I come home." Nanako said with a smile. This made you feel a bit better you didn't want the fog to set in so quickly. You said 'goodbye' to Nanako as she split up with you to continue onto her class. You smiled as you approached 'Yosuke's trashcans' as always and saw him there waiting for you.

"Ah, _ move over!" Someone yelled dashing under your umbrella.

"Man Chie, you never remember your umbrella." Yosuke said snickering.

"Hey! I'm sorry! My dog chew up mine, what was I supposed to do?" She asked pouting.

"Buy a new one at Junes." You and Yosuke said and Chie blinked.

"Huh… I guess I could've done that, heehee." She said and you and Yosuke shook your eyes. 'Typical Chie….' You thought.

The three of you made your way inside and toward your homeroom classes.

"So, Chie, how's Yukiko-san?" Yosuke asked, since Chie had stayed with her yesterday instead of going to school.

"Oh, she's okay," Chie said. "She's still really tired though and can't remember anything. She should be able to come to school soon though." You nodded. You were relieved that she was feeling better.

"I can't believe someone is throwing people into the TV…" You said sighing softly. Yosuke nodded.

"Yeah seriously, we've gotta put a stop to this." He said smiling lightly at you. "I know we can do it." You nodded slightly and Chie pouted.

"Hey, what about me? I'm helping too!" She said. Yosuke rolled his eyes.

"I meant you too," he said. Chie frowned.

"Yeah right! You were looking right at her." She complained. You chuckled.

"He can't look at both of us at the same time." You said and she just pouted. "Why does it matter, Chie? Are you jealous?" You teased nudging her. Chie made a disgusted looked.

"Ew no way!" She said.

"Ouch…" Yosuke said pouting.

"Aw, don't worry Yosuke, according to the whole school, you're already taken." Chie said winking at you. You blinked.

"We are NOT a couple." You said bluntly.

"Man, women are cruel…" Yosuke said sulking. You and Chie laughed.

The day seemed to fly by fast as you, Yosuke and Chie found ways to distract one another through every class. You even had a rather interesting 'passing notes' session in history…

You were sitting in history, being the model student you are, and taking notes and listening to your rather enthusiastic teacher express her love for history and the wonders of it; this is, until you a note flew over your head and landed right on top of your notes. You raised a curious eyebrow and looked before you to see a rather cheeky Yosuke smirking at you. You rolled your eyes and was about to throw it away when you noticed it wasn't there.

"Where did it-" You started.

"Ooo what's this?" Chie asked opening it and reading it. You and Yosuke frowned.

"You shouldn't take things that don't belong to you." Yosuke said frowning.

"Hush!" Chie said putting a hand in the male's face. "Besides, it just says 'hey'. Who writes dumb notes like that? I thought it was going to be something worth reading. What a waste." She tossed the paper back to you and returned her attention back to the over animated teacher. You rolled your eyes writing back to Yosuke.

"I wouldn't typically do this, but I think we should put Chie in her place. Let's make up a conversation worth eavesdropping on." You wrote back to the boy, then tossed it over your shoulder. He caught it, reading over it as he snickered, then placed the not in his pocket. He wrote a new one and this time making it a bit more… enticing. He tossed it back over your head with a sly smirk.

"Hey, are you busy tonight? Last night was too much fun and I really don't want to sleep by myself tonight." The note read. You rolled your eyes, but decided to play along.

"No, I'm free. Nanako-chan is going to be at a friends house tonight and Oji-sama said he'd be working all night. You can stay at my house tonight." You wrote back before tossing it over your shoulder. Chie, who'd caught a small glimpse of the note blinked a bit. She didn't quite read enough to want to snatch the note from you yet though. It didn't take long before the note was tossed back over your head and placed in the middle of your desk; Yosuke was really good at that!

"Perfect, I'll be over at eight. Oh, and don't forget to wear that-" your eyes widened at the article of clothing he described and didn't even want to finish reading it.

_"Remember, you suggested this." Izanagi said with a sigh._

_"But THAT of all things!" You said._

_"I don't even want to imagine what sick fantasy that boy dreams about." _

_"…Boys are so gross…"_

Regardless of Yosuke's… interesting suggestion, you decided to play along.

"Oh, I think I have something else you'd like MUCH better." You said drawing a small winky face before tossing it back to him. Yosuke snickered slightly, way too engaged in the conversation now. In a few short seconds, the note came flying back over your head and onto your desk.

"Oh yeah? I can't wait. What could be better than that?" It read. You rolled your eyes and Chie tried to discretely read over your shoulder. She gasped at the contents of the letter and looked over at you before writing her own note.

"It's a surprise. I know you'll love it." You replied tossing the note back at him. Chie slid her note over to you shakily.

"You didn't tell me you and Yosuke were a couple!" It read and you chuckled.

"We're not." You replied passing it back to her. Not a second later did Yosuke's note come flying onto your desk.

"Oo, now I'm even more eager. I'm not sure if I can wait until tonight. We'll have to leave right after class." It read and you chuckled.

"If we do that, then what are we going to do for the rest of the night?" You asked jokingly as you tossed it back to him just as Chie slid her note over to you.

"But you two were talking about… ya know!" It read.

"Yeah, but we're not a couple. It's just casual sex." You replied back to her. She gasped as she read the note and quickly started scribbling again. Yosuke's note rested on your desk as you read it.

"Trust me, we'll be busy." It said, but you didn't have a chance to reply as the bell rang signaling class was over and Chie ripped the note from your hands.

"How-how could you!?" She said angrily. Yosuke sighed.

"Chie-" He started.

"NO! That's just not right! You two can't be… ya know, without being a couple! That's-that's just! NO!" She said. She seemed overly upset about the situation. "What if you get pregnant?! You'll have creepy Yosuke kids!" You laughed loudly at this and Yosuke pouted.

"Hey!" He said.

"Chie, it was just a joke. We're not actually having casual sex." You said. "We just wanted to teach you not to read other people's notes is all." Chie blinked rapidly at this before frowning. She stood up without a word and walked out of the classroom.

"Oops, I think we upset her." You said chuckling. Yosuke laughed.

"Oh well, she'll get over it." He said waving dismissively. "Come on, let's go get something to eat, I'm starving."

"Ooooohh no! You're not stealing her today, she's mine!" Someone said bursting into the classroom and lifting you up effortlessly.

"Kou-kun…" You started.

"You promised!" He whined.

"Yes, I know, but I can walk myself…" You said. Kou blinked.

"Oh yeah I guess you could, hehe." He said, but walked off with you anyway. "But I'm already committed to carrying you." Yosuke pouted, but knew he couldn't keep you to himself everyday, besides he was supposed to work at Junes today. He walked out of the classroom, only to be snatched up by someone.

"W-what the hell?!" He said as he was pulled into an empty section of the hallway. "Chie, what do you want?" Chie looked intently at the male for a long moment.

"You like _, don't you?" She asked him.

"Wha? Dude, it was just a joke. Nothing in that letter was real." He said rolling his eyes.

"Yeah I know, but you were WAAAYYY too into that! You like her, don't lie to me!"

"I do not!" Yosuke insisted, but the light blush lighting his cheeks gave it away.

"You're blushing! Ah, I KNEW you did!" Chie said happily. Yosuke sighed.

"Okay, so I kinda do, but I don't really know…" He said. Chie raised an eyebrow.

"How do you not know?" She asked.

"Tch, you don't understand ANYTHNG do you?" He said. "It's just that… I mean she'd definitely attractive, I mean REALLY attractive-"

"Yeah, yeah, she's stunning, just get on with it." Chie said rolling her eyes. Yosuke rolled his eyes.

"And she's awesome, I mean we've got a lot in common and my parents seem to really like her-"

"What?! She already met your parents?!"

"Wha- yeah, I invited her over a while ago, but that doesn't matter!" He said. "It's just that I don't really know her all that well yet… and I don't want her to think the same about me that… that Saki-sempai did…" He said. Chie suddenly got serious feeling a bit of guilt for her friend.

"Yosuke… _'s not like that. You can tell she really cares about you. If she didn't then she'd blow you off like she does all of the underclassman boys that put notes in her shoebox." She said. Yosuke could say for once, that Chie offered him some meaningful advice, advice he'd definitely take to heart.

"You're right… thanks Chie." He said smiling lightly down at the girl.

"Welcome~!" She replied smiling. "And don't worry, I wont tell _ anything about this conversation, promise!"

"Yukiko-san either!" Yosuke said frowning. Chie rolled her eyes.

"Fine, fine, I wont tell her either."

You sighed softly as Kou carried you into the gym where he practiced basketball. The other students in the gym looked at the two of you strangely as Kou carried you inside.

"Hey guys, I brought our manager!" He said happily. He gently placed you down on your feet and rolled your eyes.

"Sorry about that. I tried to get him to put me down, but apparently, once he's committed, nothing stops him." You grumbled and the other players seemed to think this was humorous. "Anyway, I'm _ _ and Kou-kun asked me to be your manager, so I'll try my hardest to make things a bit easier for you." You said smiling. Kou rolled his eyes as his teammates talked among themselves about how happy they were to have you around.

"I don't know, _-chan, I might not be able to keep you around. It seems you're a distraction." Kou joked immediately silencing the mass of men in the gym room. You chuckled as you joined the gym teacher in his office to discuss that you'd be doing, then rejoined the team to watch them practice. Basically, you only had to attend once a week to write down what they improved on and what needed work. You'd have to come everyday for two weeks before the game, then at the games you have to record the games. Easy enough you supposed, but it would take up a lot of your time. You hoped their games wouldn't interfere with the TV world.

After practice, the group changed their clothes and met you at the bleachers. Kou was first to shove them all aside and take you by the hand.

"Sorry, she has plans." He said with a sly smirk. The boys didn't seem too pleased, but Kou obviously didn't care. He lead you outside and toward the soccer field where Daisuke was practicing.

"Hey man, come on, let's go get something to eat." He said. Daisuke nodded.

"Yeah sure, just let me change." He said running off to shower and change in the locker room. Kou sat down on one of the stands and you joined him.

"You and Daisuke-kun seem to be very close." You said and he smiled.

"Yeah, he's my best friend." Kou said. "We've been together for as long as I can remember. We do pretty much everything together." You chuckled.

"It seems like it. I've never been very close to anyone like that." You admitted. "My parents move around a lot, so it's hard for me to get close to people." Kou seemed a bit apologetic toward you.

"Damn, that sucks, but you seem pretty likeable, I'm sure you have lots of friend wherever you go." He said. "I know you sure have a lot of people that want to be you friend here. I know every guy on the basketball team does." He laughed at his comment and you laughed with him.

"Heyy, am I interrupting something?" Daisuke asked as he joined you two. "I can always come back in like ten minutes."

"Na, it's cool, but dude you shower quick." Kou said.

"Yeah, you get used to it. Some guys give off a weird aura, ya know? You just don't wanna stay in the shower too long with them…" You and Kou laughed, but Daisuke seemed to be serious about it.

"I'm serious! I mean, it's just creepy! I don't even know how to explain it."

"Dude, maybe you should do something about that. Have like a team meeting or something." Kou said.

"And say what? 'Some of you are creeping on me in the shower and I want you to stop'?"

"Hell yeah! I'd be seriously creeped out if some guy was gawking at me in the shower."

"I don't want to embarrass anyone, or make anything think I was looking at THEM." Kou laughed.

"Dude, that's so gross, let's not talk about this anymore; especially not with _ here." Daisuke just then seemed to realize you were there.

"Oh, sorry, _-chan." He said. "Guess you probably didn't want to hear that." He chuckled slightly nervously, but you shook your head.

"No, it's okay. I completely understand. In gym class that happens to me too…" You admitted. "It is creepy, especially since there aren't enough showers and we have to share…" Kou cringed.

"I'd rather stink than share a shower with another guy. I don't care who it is." He said and Daisuke nodded in agreement.

"Seriously, that's disgusting."

"But you'll get in a hot spring with another guy?" You said.

"That's different! One, he has a towel and two he's under water. I ain't gotta see his junk just hanging there." Kou said.

"Dude, don't talk like that with her around." Daisuke scolded.

"What? She asked!" You laughed at the two. The afternoon would definitely be lively.

The two brought you to a local restaurant in the Shopping District called, 'Aiya'. This was the two's favorite place to eat, they told you. You walked inside and the smell of delicious food filled your senses the minute you walked inside. The man behind the counter greeted you politely and took your order.

You told joked and exchanged friendly conversation with the two boys as you ate. Daisuke paid for your meal, insisting that a woman shouldn't have to buy her own food. Kou thought it was just his attempt at impressing you. After eating with the two, they walked you home, then waved goodbye to you as you made your way into the house.

When you were inside, Nanako greeted you happily. Dojima was also home, which made you happy. You hadn't seen him in so long, it was nice to have him over for dinner. You and Nanako happily prepared dinner, then you ate happily with the two as Nanako talked about visiting Junes and Dojima talked briefly about work.

After a pleasant dinner with your uncle and cousin, you went up to your room and did your homework before receiving a text message.

_"Hey, it's Chie, are you busy tomorrow after school? Yukiko has a doctor appointment and I don't have anything to do. Wanna hang out?" _You smiled softly as you read it. You were glad she wasn't still upset with you after you and Yosuke teased her. Chie was a good friend of yours and you hadn't spent much time with her.

_"Sure Chie, sounds like fun!"_

_"Awesome! See you tomorrow!" _ After your conversation with Chie, you went to sleep earlier than usual. You were exhausted, since you hadn't gotten much sleep the night before.


	11. Chapter 11

**Date: April 22**

You woke up, as usual and got ready for class. You made your way down the steps and greeted Nanako as usual. You didn't see Dojima and ate breakfast with Nanako, as always. It was sunny today, so you didn't need your umbrella today. You left the house with Nanako and split up at the usual place and headed toward the place where you'd meet Yosuke at his usual place… again.

You sighed, you were getting bored with the urban lifestyle; having grown up in cities, it was boring having every day the same. You didn't get the luxury of going to a different restaurant everyday, or shopping in different store, or going to the movies.

You blinked spotting a woman and what looked like her son walk past you.

"Please, don't run." The woman said.

"Shut up!" The child said running off and the woman sighed speeding up keep up with the child. You shook your head, how could a child be so disrespectful…?

"Hey," Yosuke greeted falling into step with you as you two walked. "You see that kid? Man, I guess he IS at the rebellious age, huh?" You chuckled slightly and you nodded with a slight smile.

"Oh, about the culprit, I was thinking about it some, and I don't understand him at all." He said. You raised an eyebrow waiting for him to continue. "It seems like a lot of effort to dump someone into a TV… How is he doing it? The more I think about it, the more confused I get…" He muttered.

"Come to think of it… I'm not sure either. I mean, there's no way to hide in a place like this. Maybe Yukiko knows something, let's wait for her to recover and ask her." You said.

"You're right. Don't forget to bring it up after we've heard Yukiko-san's side of things." He said and you nodded as you proceeded inside.

Lunchtime came by rather quickly and you were bored. Chie and Yosuke seemed to have noticed your discomfort and unusual attitude.

"Hey, is everything okay?" Chie asked.

"Yeah, you seem pretty down…" Yosuke said. "Is it 'cause you didn't hang out with me yesterday?" He teased nudging you.

"No." You said bluntly, Yosuke pouted and Chie snickered.

"Way to shoot me down…" Yosuke said and you chuckled.

"I'm sorry. I guess I'm just… bored." You admitted. "Everyday I do the same thing. I'm just not used to that is all." Yosuke sighed.

"I understand how you feel, man. I was like that too. It'll pass." He said. Chie rolled her eyes.

"First of all, she's not a man. Second of all, who cares what you were like? No one." Chie said. "Well, maybe we can go to Okinawa after school sometime." You blinked.

"Okinawa? I've never been there." You said. Yosuke shrugged.

"It's not really like the city, but it has a few shops and a movie theater. It'll be fun for all of us to get together and go one day." He said and you nodded.

"Sure, sounds like fun." You said smiling slightly.

"Great! Then it's decided, once Yukiko recovers, we'll go!" Chie said and you and Yosuke nodded.

After lunch, you got the pleasure of meeting yet another new teacher. They just seemed to get weirder and weirder… This one had a puppet that looked creepily similar to him.

"Alright, alriiiiiight, settle down now, class is underway." The teacher said. "My name is Mr. Hosoi, and in this class you'll be learning about contemporary writing. Let's all have fun. I know this is off-topic, but what's the point of applying for colleges outside Inaba? Why even bother? Nothing good ever comes out of competing with city-folk. The country side is all you need." The teacher rambled. They all seemed to do that…

"Mmmhmm. Well, let's practice our spelling. Which of the following words is spelled correctly? You! Hana-chan! You're just the kind of guy who relies on his PC's spell check! Spell millennium!"

"Huh!? Well, he got that right, but… _! Help me out here!" Yosuke begged.

"_Poor idiot Yosuke." _Izanagi teased.

"M-I-L-L-E-N-N-I-U-M." You assisted the male in spelling. The teacher seemed pleased.

"Ooh, good job, Hana-chan! The word "millennium" is very commonly misspelled. As you know, the word "millennium" comes from the Latin word "mille," meaning "thousand," and "annum," meaning "year." Remember when 1999 became the year 2000? Lots of words came out of that shift, like millennium baby, or millennium bug." The teacher said through his puppet. You rolled your eyes at this.

"Thanks, _, you're a lifesaver." Yosuke said smiling.

"You're welcome." You said smirking over at him.

After school, you waited for Chie to finish getting a scolding for Morooka for falling asleep in class, so you could spend time with her. Yosuke was also getting yelled at for the same thing, so you were rather bored just sitting there.

"What's up, you busy?" Kou asked as he walked into the classroom with Daisuke.

"Is something wrong?" Daisuke asked as he and Kou stood beside your desk. You shook her head.

"No, just waiting for Chie." You said shrugging.

"Oh yeah? Chie said something about you being bored with country life. It can be kinda dull, huh?" Kou said. You nodded a bit.

"It's not that I don't like it here, I do, but I've just been bored lately." You told them. Daisuke smiled slightly.

"Well, if you ever get bored, give us a call and we'll keep ya entertained." He said and you chuckled.

"I'll definitely do that." You said smiling and you received a happy smile back by the two. You blinked as you felt something… oddly familiar erupt in your stomach.

_Thou aren't I… And I am thou…_

_Thou hast established a new bond…_

_It brings thee closer to the truth…_

_Thou shalt be blessed when creating personas of the Strength Arcana._

Those voices again… so you established a new social link.

_"Strength Acana, huh? Figures."_ Izanagi said.

_"What do you mean?"_ You questioned.

_"They're sports freaks… duh." _

_"Oh…that makes sense… hehe."_ Izanagi sweat dropped.

"_! Come on, let's go!" Chie called from the doorway. You waved 'goodbye' to the boys before walking out with Chie. Chie lead you to Samegawa with a happy smiled plastered on her lips.

"Hm, this looks like a good spot!" Chie said happily.

"Um… for what exactly?" You asked curiously.

"Y'know, for training! I need to hone my kicking skills, or I won't be able to use them in battle. I tried practicing at home… But my mom and dad yelled me for putting a hole in the wall. Still, now's the time to train, right!?" You chuckled at her, but liked that she seemed so committed.

"Sure, Chie." You said smiling. "This looks like a great spot for it too."

"You think so too!?" She chirped. "So let's train together!" It seemed like a hopeful request, but she looked a bit doubtful. "No…?"

"Sure, sounds like fun." You said chuckling.

"Yesss! Thanks, _!" She said. She looked really happy. "That thing… Y'know, from that time? I mean the Shadow that came out of me. I feel pathetic knowing that's another "me." Makes me feel like I gotta work harder!" She seemed really energetic and excited about changing herself and helping people in the process. You were starting to think you were seeing a new side to Chie.  
"Allllright, let's do it! Between you and me, we'll be unstoppable!" She said happily. This marks the beginning of your training with Chie. '_This could be fun, and with the killer still at large being in good shape can't hurt.' _You thought. You blinked feeling that all-too-familiar feeling in your mind again. Your social link with Chie went up to 2.

"I wonder how far it can go...?" You thought curiously.

"Let's start today with frog leaps! C'mon, you try some!" Chie encouraged. You sweat dropped, but you trained with Chie for a while and walked partway home with her. Once inside, you cooked dinner with Nanako, did your homework, took a shower, put Nanako to bed, made Dojima a plate for dinner then went to sleep as usual.


	12. Chapter 12

**Date: April 23**

You woke up and continued your boring morning routine as always. You proceeded toward school the same as usual, but overheard something very interesting on your way.

**"**I heard they've put up ads for part-time jobs on the town bulletin board!  
I wonder if there's anything there I can make some easy cash with." One of the girls said. It was the same too girls that enjoyed gossiping loudly so everyone could hear them.

**"**Hmm… I don't think you have the Diligence to handle a job that takes a lot of time." The other said.

**"**That's so mean! Maybe I don't… But, I bet I'll be more diligent if I get a job!" She replied. "I bet you wouldn't do too well with a job where you have to work with others because you lack Understanding, huh?"

_"A job, huh? Maybe that could help with me being so bored!"_ You thought.

_"Bored? Jobs ARE boring… Why would you want to have a job?"_ Izanagi asked. You huffed.

_"It won't be that big a deal! Besides, some extra money would be nice." _

_"Whatever you say…" _

You walked to class with Yosuke as usual. He looked tired and didn't seem to have much to say today, but everyone kinda seemed sleepy, even Chie. They both fell asleep in class again…

"I wonder what's up with them…?" You thought.

"Maybe they were up late togethaaaaaaa~~" Izanagi teased.

"Wha- Izanagi! They would not!"

"How do you know? That's probably why she made such a big deal over that note!"

"That is NOT why! Shut up!"

"Ooooh~ someone's jealous!"

"I AM not!"

"….I'm you. I know when you're jealous."

"Yeah, well maybe you're the jealous one instead of me!"

"That doesn't make sense, because we're the same person!"

"...shut up! I'm trying to listen to the teacher!" You sulked for a moment ignoring Izanagi as you looked up at ms. Sofue.

"Well that's it for the Huang He civilization. Now let's move on to the Mesopotamian times." She said. "Mesopotamia means "the land between the two rivers" in Greek. In other words, the civilization was built between the Tigris and EuphratesRivers. Mesopotamia, Indas, Egypt, Huang He… All of the four great ancient civilizations rose from river land. The rivers provided many blessings, which allowed the cultures to flourish. Mesopotamia had some distinctive laws…" She continued. You were surprised she hadn't gotten off topic yet.

"Mr. Hanamura, wake up! Pop quiz! What was the commonality among the four great ancient civilizations!?" She called out to Yosuke, startling him.

"Ngh!? …What? _, h-help me out! What does she mean by commonality?" Yosuke asked you urgently. You sighed.

"They were by the riverside…" You replied.

"Hmph, I guess you were paying attention. You're right, civilization began near rivers." Ms. Sofue said. "You should keep those words in mind. "Civilizations" and "by the river." It'll be helpful when you need it. Anyhow… I'm glad you got it right. "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth." …You'd be in big trouble if you were in Mesopotamia." She warned him.

"…What's she mean by that? I owe you big time for this, _. I better stay awake next time…" Yosuke said to you and you simply nodded. What Izanagi said had really gotten you thinking. You hadn't quite considered Chie and Yosuke being together, mainly because it seemed the two were just so… opposite, but now that you thought about it… there DID seem to be a lot of sexual tension between the two! But could you really be jealous? You didn't want to believe that you were. It would be awful for you to be jealous of two of your closest friends, you should be happy for them! You were a bit frustrated, but decided to put that behind you, maybe you were just imagining it. You'd ask them what was up at lunch and figure things out of yourself.

**Lunchtime**

When lunch finally arrived, you had to wake the two up… again. You figured now was a good time as any to ask them why the hell they were so tired.

"What've you guys been doing all night? This is the second day in a row you've fallen asleep in almost every class." You said. You attempted to make it sound like a joke but you were serious. The two looked rather alarmed and looked toward one another nervously.

"W-well ya see…" Yosuke started.

"Uh- stupid Yosuke kept waking me up to tell me dirty jokes! He kept me up all night being gross! Ya know you should really stop that! It's starting to give me the creeps!" Chie said quickly.

"What?! I wasn't- I mean, come on. You thought they were funny! Why're you complaining now?" What they were saying was obviously a lie and you were even more frustrated than before.

"Well… never mind. I promised Kou-kun and Daisuke-kun I'd eat lunch with them; I just wanted to wake you up, so you wouldn't miss lunch." You said walking out with your food.

"Thanks…" The two said sheepishly. Were they really dating….? It did seem possible, but… well you just weren't sure.

"Dude she is totally onto us!" Chie whispered to Yosuke after you'd left.

"I know, but what're we supposed to say?" Yosuke said.

"Well, I don't think she knows what we're doing, but we're going to have to stop talking so much about it."

"Yeah, but if I don't talk to you, who am I supposed to talk to?"

"Yosuke, we'll just have to find another time to talk about it. Like… after school or something!"

"But I don't want to. I want to hang out with HER after school…" Yosuke grumbled sadly. Chie scoffed.

"Look you love-sick puppy, if you don't have the guts to tell her how you feel, then you're just going to have to deal with this!" Yosuke sighed.

"Alright, fine… Whenever she can't hang out with me, we'll talk."

"Hey! I wanna hang out with her too!"

"What? Are you crushing on her too?! Come on, I saw her first!"

"Wha- ew no! And I saw her first, not you…" Chie remarked. "Besides, she's my friend too."

"Tch, fine! When ever BOTH of us aren't with her, we'll talk."

"Deal!"

You had long since left the classroom and found Daisuke in the hallway. He had just come back from warming up his lunch and was going to meet Kou in the classroom.

"Hm? Oh, _-san, what're you doing?" He asked smiling politely at you.

"Hey, Daisuke-kun, are you and Kou-kun eating lunch together today?" You asked.

"Yeah, wanna join us?"

"If you don't mind-"

"Of course we don't, come on!" He opened the classroom door for you and let you walk inside. You smiled at him, he was always such a gentleman.

"Heyy, _-chan! What brings you here?" Kou asked with a grin.

"I found her wandering around and invited her to eat with us, why not, right?" Daisuke said taking a seat beside Kou.

"Heh, cool. Hope we're not disappointing Yosuke too much." Kou joked.

"Na, he's got Chie, he'll be fine." You said. You were slightly bitter about the response, but the boys didn't seem to notice and if they did, they pretended not to.

"Well, we'll always welcome you, _-san." Daisuke said with a smile and Kou nodded in agreement.

"Thanks guys, you're the best." You said smiling.

Lunch flew by as you shared your lunches, Kou was surprisingly an amazing chef. You couldn't believe how delicious his food was, even though he said yours was better. Daisuke, you realized, was lactose-intolerant but still downed almost half a gallon of milk. Kou told you he'd text you when he had to go running out of the classroom. You chuckled and nodded. It was strange how you never realized how… interesting the two were. Sure, you thought of them as friends and you had a lot of fun with them, but since the two were always together, you never paid any attention to what made them different from one another. They were actually polar opposites. Daisuke was shy and gentleman-like. Kou was bold and flirty. Kou was very picky and liked things his way, while Daisuke was very flexible and enjoyed trying new things. Kou was first to take charge in a situation while Daisuke seemed to fall into sync with everything else and just tag along. The two were so different that together they seemed to make the perfect person. That's what made them such a great pair.

After school you packed your belongings, in an attempt to go check out the job listings.

"Hey _, you busy today?" Yosuke asked popping up at you desk, as always.

"Sorry, Yosuke-kun, but I'm going to go look for a job today. I'm running low on money and I want to help out Ojisama and Nanako." You said. "Maybe some other time." You waved 'goodbye' to him and Chie before leaving the room. Just as you were about to walk away, you overheard him speak to Chie.

"That's the third day in row…" He grumbled. "Do you think she's avoiding me?"

"No, she's just busy, Yosuke. Give her a break. I mean she just got here a few weeks ago. She's still settling in and stuff." Chie encouraged.

"Yeah, I guess so…" He grumbled. You sighed, you felt bad, but Yosuke wasn't your only friend and you had a life too. Besides, wasn't he supposed to be working at Junes?

You made your way to the Shopping District and checked the billboard for job listings.

"These are all crap!" Izanagi grumbled.

"I thought that guy at the gas station said there would be an opening…" You replied.

"Yeah right, he just lied so he could keep talking to you… creep."

"Hey, look at this one! It's for helping at the local day-care center not too far from here."

"Ew, I don't want to look after dirty booger-infested children…"

"Izanagi, calm down, I mean it pays well and it isn't on any of the days I have – or am helping Kou-kun, it's perfect!"

"Ugh, fine…" You smiled taking the flyer and calling the number. They seemed excited to have someone take up the job and asked you to come immediately.

You took the bus to head to the daycare center and were introduced to the children. They seemed to be extremely interested in you…

"Miss, do you have a boyfriend?" One of the little boys asked.

"Don't ask him that, you creep!" A little girl responded to him. You chuckled.

"Let's play tag, Miss!" Another child suggested. "You're it!" You blinked rapidly before running off after them. You sighed after it was time for the children to leave. You couldn't believe you survived the children tugging you in every direction. You looked around to make sure everyone was gone and you spotted once child still waiting for their parent.

"How are things, _-chan? Has everyone been picked up?" The Day-care supervisor asked. "Looks like Yuuta-kun is still here. It's always like this, though…" She whispered quietly. You raised an eyebrow as you looked at the child. He looked oddly familiar… It wasn't long before a woman showed up to pick him up.

"Hi, Yuu-kun, I'm sorry I'm late." She said reaching out to him.

"Whatever!" The boy said as he angrily ran off. Now you remembered, they were the mother and son who walked passed you yesterday morning!

"Are you… one of the supervisors?" The woman asked you and you nodded. "I see… I'm sure Yuu-kun will cause you trouble, but please take care of him…" You nodded and smiled as she walked quickly after him.

"That's Yuuta Minami…" Your supervisor said. "He's full of energy during his play sessions… Maybe too much energy. But once she arrives, he's a totally different kid… She's his stepmother, so I guess it can't be helped. Yuuta-kun's father got remarried to that woman you just met. I heard she's from the city… I really don't know what she's thinking. Perhaps that's why Yuuta-kun is a troublemaker at school, to! The other day, he-" The caretaker continues gossiping and you tuned her out as you watched the two. There was definitely more going on than just that. She seemed stressed and frustrated too. What was she doing while he was at day-care and where was his father? You knew you shouldn't pry, but you couldn't help but be curious.

After talking with your supervisor, you went home. You weren't sure how much more of all this gossip you could take. It was bad enough in the city, but here it was worse. It didn't help that everyone knew everyone. Rumors seemed to fly so quickly and it always got so twisted and confusing. You hated listening to it and wouldn't dare pass it on. You sighed bitterly as you walked inside of the house. Nanako greeted you as usual and you two made dinner, ate together and you went to bed. You were exhausted from running after those children all day, you could definitely use the rest.


	13. Chapter 13

**Date: April 24**

You woke up early today, due to a strange nightmare. You couldn't quite remember what it was about, but you were very shaken. Without thinking, you grabbed your cell phone and called the first person that came to mind; Yosuke. You'd talked to him before about your crazy dreams and you knew he'd give you some advice today.

"Mm… 'ello…?" Came the reply. It was just now that you realized it was three AM! What were you doing calling Yosuke at this hour?!

"O-oh, um… Yosuke-kun… I-uh- I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"What's wrong?" He asked. You could hear the slight creaking of his bed as he either shifted or sat up.

"It's nothing. I'll just talk to you about it on Monday. Sorry for waking you."

"If it was nothing, then you wouldn't have called me. What happened have a weird dream again?" He didn't seem to be mocking you and if he was, he just didn't have the energy to make it sound like he was.

"Yeah… I can't remember what it was about but… I can't go back to sleep… I'm scared." You admitted. You were a little embarrassed to say it and expected Yosuke to laugh at you, but he didn't.

"Hm…" Yosuke started, deep in thought for a short moment. "Okay, I'm on my way." The male said, much more triumphantly this time. You could hear him getting out of bed and shuffling around, most likely getting dressed.

"Wha- no no no no! You don't have to do that, I'll-"

"Too late, I'm already dressed. See ya soon." He said hanging up. You huffed, what is Dojima was home?! He'd be infuriated to see a male in his house! You were no longer scared of the dream, you were scared of what Dojima might do to both you AND Yosuke! He carries a gun after all and he's a detective! If he killed Yosuke, he'd never be found!

You made your way toward Dojima's room to peek inside to see whether he was there or not. As you peered inside, you were relieved to see that the man was not in his room. Just to be sure he wasn't on the couch, you crept down the steps and turned on the lamp in the living room, nope he wasn't there. You sighed relieved. At least Yosuke wouldn't get into trouble… if you could sneak him out of the house in time…

It was the weekend, so Nanako wouldn't wake you up for breakfast like she usually did. Maybe you just keep him in your room until the afternoon and say he slipped in while Nanako was in the restroom? You didn't know! But you figured everything would be okay, as long as Dojima did NOT show up.

It wasn't too long after that, that Yosuke texted you to tell you he arrived.

"At least he didn't ring the doorbell like a dumbass." Izanagi chimed.

"True, true," you replied. You quietly opened the door in your pajamas. He chuckled.

"Cute PJ's." He teased and you blushed.

"Shut up!" You whispered threateningly. "You're lucky Ojisama isn't here! He'd kill you if he saw you!" Yosuke waved dismissively.

"Don't worry, everything will be fine. Now come on, let's go back to bed." He said ushering you up to your room. You sighed, but couldn't hide the light blush on your cheeks. You and Yosuke would be sharing a bed… It just crossed your mind that that might upset Chie! Weren't they a couple? Regardless, you laid down in the bed and Yosuke laid beside you. You strangely felt comfortable with Yosuke next to you, even though it'd never happened before, it felt rather… natural.

You didn't know it, but Yosuke was an emotional wreck. He'd spent the entire week talking with Chie about his feelings for you and here he was lying in bed beside you! This would be the perfect time to make a move, but he just couldn't! He was so nervous he hoped you couldn't see him blushing. He felt like his head was going to explode.

"Calm down, it's just a girl." Jiraiya teased.

"Shut up! It's not just ANY girl, it's _! What if I freak her out?! I mean I'm supposed to be here to comfort her not make a move!" Yosuke said.

"Well you may not get another chance. Between the case, her sports team, her cousin, Kou and now a job she might not be able to make the time for you. If you don't tell her how you feel you'll turn into a sideline friend."

"Wha- a sideline friend? What the hell is that? You know what, I don't even care. She wouldn't put me off… at least… I don't think so…"

"She might HAVE to. Kou was smart, he made her join his sports team, so he'll see her there, because she HAS to attend it, also with her – team. It's mandatory. Her cousin is a given, she lives with her she has to take care of her. As for her job, it's obvious to get paid you have to show up. The only thing tying you two together is the case and now Chie AND Yukiko are involved, when are you going to get any time to spend together? Obviously you won't unless you do something that would make her want to spend time with you." Yosuke bit his lip. Jiraiya was right… _ might not intentionally put him aside, but she might just get so busy with what she HAS to do, that she can't spend any time with him, but if he were her boyfriend, she'd HAVE to make time for him.

"Okay, okay, I'm gonna try this!" He said.

"Too late now," Jiraiya said sighing.

"Wha-?" Yosuke started before glancing over at you. You'd fallen asleep, very comfortably snuggled up against Yosuke. He sighed bitterly in defeat. Great, he'd lost his chance. He could only hope you'd find the time to spend with him, so someday he could really tell you how he felt about you. He closed his eyes in an attempt to get some sleep himself. It took a while, but he'd finally started to fall asleep when he heard a gasp and a sudden jolt from someone nearby. He was jerked awake and glanced up to meet your gaze.

You'd had a nightmare again, the same one, but you couldn't remember it. Strangely you just knew it was the same dream, even though you couldn't remember either one. Your heart was racing and you were shaken by the dream.

"_?" Yosuke asked and you'd just realized he was there with you. "Are you okay?" He sat up slightly to meet your gaze. You nodded.

"Y-yeah, just a nightmare again… sorry, did I wake you?" You said. You certainly hoped you wouldn't have them all night long...

"No, I was awake, don't worry about it." Yosuke said. It was partly true. He held out his arms to give you a comforting hug, which you gladly accepted. It was an uncomfortable hug, but afterward you settled with resting your head on his chest. He didn't seem to mind.

"Do you remember what it was about this time?" He asked and you shook your head.

"No…" Yosuke nodded and made a small 'mm' sound to let you know he heard you. After a moment he patted your head.

"Don't worry, I'll protect you!" He said jokingly trying to sound convincing. You blinked before you laughed softly, but you felt like Yosuke WOULD protect you, after all he did jump up in the middle of the night and walk all the way to your house just to talk with you about a silly nightmare you couldn't even remember. He was a true friend and you were grateful for that. You paused then, was he with Chie when he ran off to come see you? Did you interrupt their time together?

"Um… Yosuke-kun… I'm sorry for dragging you here in the middle of the night like this…" You said. "I mean, I'm sure Chie would be upset to know you were here…" Yosuke raised an eyebrow. Why the hell would Chie be upset? She'd probably be cheering…

"What do you mean? Why would Chie be upset about it?" He asked. "And if she was why should I care?" You blinked. That wasn't anyway to talk about his girlfriend… right?

"You two are dating, aren't you…?" You asked. Yosuke jumped up practically tossing you off of your futon.

"What?! Hell no!" He said. "Why would you think that?!" You blinked sitting up properly.

"Um… well you two were both sleeping during class and when I asked you about it you got all nervous, so I just assumed…" You started.

"Wha- no! No way! We're not dating. She's just been… talking to me on the phone about some stuff…" He grumbled. "We're not a couple! I don't like Chie."

"Some… stuff?" You questioned. You wouldn't admit it, but you were relieved he and Chie weren't a couple. Yosuke blushed when you questioned him about what they were talking about.

"Okay if I tell you, you have to promise not to laugh." He said and you nodded.

"I-it's about girls…" He said. "She's helping me talk to girls better…" You blinked and had to bite your lip to keep yourself from laughing.

"Y-you asked Chie to give you advice on girls?" You asked before bursting into a fit of laughter. You had to hide your face in your pillow to stay quiet enough not to wake up Nanako.

"Wha- you said you wouldn't laugh!" He said pouting.

"Sorry, sorry. It's not that you asked about girls, it's just that you asked CHIE of all people. She's the most tomboyish girl I've ever met." You said. Yosuke sighed.

"Yeah, well she was the only one not too busy to help me." He said. He didn't exactly mean to say it, but it just seemed to come out and you knew it was directed toward you. You silenced your laughter and sighed.

"Yosuke-kun, I know I've been busy lately, but I haven't been busy on purpose. I want to hang out with you, but I won't be able to do it everyday." You told him. "Even if we can't physically be together you can still call or text me whenever you like, plus I'm at Junes literally everyday to buy dinner with Nanako. We can always talk then."

Yosuke sat back and thought about what you'd said and you were right. Even if he couldn't spend everyday with you after school, he still got to see you during class and lunch and at Junes. He wouldn't become a 'side-line friend' to you, because everything you did almost involved him. School-he had class with you and you ate lunch together, Nanako-she loved Junes and he practically LIVED there, plus the case where he'd see you all the time. He had to admit, he felt a lot better now that he'd talked to you.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." He said chuckling. You rolled your eyes.

"You over-think everything, Yosuke-kun." You said.

"Heh, yeah I do, sorry." He said. You yawned, causing him to yawn also.

"Maybe we should try to go back to sleep?" He suggested and you nodded. You pulled the covers back over yourselves and snuggled into bed. Both of you seemed to feel much better and were able to fall asleep almost immediately.

When you woke up, Yosuke was still sleeping. His arm was draped lazily across you as his other supported his head, since you took the entire pillow (oops). You checked the time on your alarm clock to see that it was only nine. You grabbed your phone off of the small desk beside your bed and checked your messages. Chie had called you, strangely…? You called her back, being sure to be quiet, since Yosuke was still sleeping.

"Hello?" Chie said through the phone.

"Hey, you called? Sorry I was sleeping."

"Yeah! I just wanted to know if you were busy today? I was thinking, since exams would be coming up soon, that you, Yosuke and I could get together and do some studying? I called him too, but he didn't answer. Guess he's sleeping too." She said.

"Oh, yeah sure, that sounds cool. I'll ask Yosuke-kun if he wants to come too."

"Ask me to go where?" Yosuke asked yawning. Chie paused on the phone for a second.

"THAT'S why he wouldn't answer his phone!" She blurted. "Ooo~ I need details!"

"W-wha? No! It's nothing like that!" You said a light blush lighting your cheeks.

"Ugh, we'll explain later." Yosuke said stretching. "I'm still tired." Chie snickered obviously having the wrong idea; regardless, you agreed to get together with her and study.

A few hours later, you managed to get Yosuke out of bed and you got dressed before leaving. The two of you met up with Chie at Samagawa at the park bench a little passed the river.

"Well hello my favorite love birds!" She teased waving. Yukiko was already sitting down with a book open. Yosuke groaned.

"How many times do we have to tell you, it's not what you think!" Yosuke said frowning.

"What's not?" Kou asked trailing up behind you along with Daisuke.

"Oh, I hope you don't mind, but I invited them to study with us too." Chie said smiling. "I figured if we all studied together, then maybe we could help each other out."

"Oh, okay, that's cool." Yosuke said sitting down. Chie smirked filling the two in on what, she assumed, you and Yosuke had been doing that night.

"Wha- you slept with Yosuke, _-chan?!" Kou asked. Daisuke sighed.

"You really shouldn't jump to conclusions like that, or yell it out loud to the whole town!" He said.

"It's not what you think. I just had a nightmare and he came over to comfort me." You said.

"Oh, come on, guys that don't do that unless they want something in return if ya know what I mean." Kou said.

"Guys that aren't pigs do! I bet if she'd called Daisuke, he would've come to help her, right Daisuke?" Chie challenged. Daisuke blinked rapidly.

"Huh? Me? Well, yeah, I guess so. I mean, she had a nightmare, she was probably scared. Totally understandable." He said. Kou rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, but why Yosuke? Why not me or Daisuke?" Kou asked directing his attention to you. You shrugged.

"I don't know, I'd just talked to Yosuke-kun about them before and knew he'd help me out." You said. "I didn't exactly expect him to come over, he just did."

"Um… I thought we were going to study…" Yukiko said. Everyone looked over at her before quickly nodding.

"Right, right." Chie said sitting back down beside her. You sat down on the other side, next to Yosuke and Kou sat beside you. Daisuke sat down next to him.

The group had finally begun studying and to your surprise, you were able to get a lot in. Between Yukiko, Daisuke and yourself you were able to help out the other three as well. It wasn't long, thought, before it'd started to get dark and the group set off to go home. You all walked mostly together only splitting up to walk in another direction toward your home. When just you and Yukiko remained, she smiled a bit at you.

"I'm feeling much better," she admitted. "I'm hoping I'll be able to go back to school soon."

"That's great!" You said happily.

"The doctors told me that I should rest until Wednesday, but truthfully, I'm feeling a bit restless. I don't want to stay cooped up in that inn anymore…" She vented. You nodded assuming it meant more than just not being able to leave the house. When you'd finally separated with Yukiko you walked home. You ate dinner with Nanako as usual before putting her to bed, making a plate for Dojima and going to bed yourself. You laid down and sighed softly. You hoped you'd be able to get some sleep tonight.


	14. Chapter 14

**Date: April 25**  
You woke up, your alarm clock ringing in your ear. You had the day off of school, which was nice, because exams started in a week and you could really use some extra studying time. You got up, stretched before taking a glance at your calander. You had to work this afternoon... lovely. You sigh making your way down the steps and greeted Nanako who was watching TV as usual.  
"Good morning," she greeted. "I'm going to go hang out with Yuuta-kun today!" She said happily.  
"Yuuta-kun? Who's Yuuta-kun?" You pressed with a small smirk. "Oh, does Nanako-chan have a crush?" Her face lit up brightly.  
"N-no!" She said looking away from you. You giggled.  
"Ooooo, you better tell me!" You said. She looking up at you a silly grin on her face.  
"Or else what?" She challenged. You paused, before smirking walking up to the weary girl.  
"Or else... I'll tickle you!" You said tackling her to the ground and tickling her. She laughed and squirmed around on the floor trying desperately to get away from you. After a moment, she finally gave in.  
"Okay, okay!" She said laughing. "Yuuta-kun is my friend... for right not now..." She said blushing brightly and her eyes shifting to her feet. You chuckled.  
"Don't worry I won't tell Ojisama." You said and she flashed you a grateful smile. She stood up properly and you stood up with her. She waved to you before quickly and happily exiting the house.

With nothing else to do, you flopped on the couch flipping through the channels. You continued to hear about the announcer that passed away and the police's inability to solve the case as quickly and effectively as the media thought they should. You thought back to how hard Dojima worked and how he was never home and it made you very frustrated to hear those things. You turned the channel listening to the Junes commercial Nanako seemed to adore so much. You smiled a bit thinking about the small girl and a little about Yosuke. You wondered if he was working on his day off today. Prob ably.  
You paused hearing your phone ring. Checking it, you saw that it was Kou. You chuckled thinking of the boy. He was probably calling you to make sure Yosuke didn't stay the night with you again. You smirked at the thought tempted to tell him he did just to tease the boy.  
"You enjoy picking on him, don't you?" Izanagi asked.  
"Whatever do you mean?" You replied with a smirk.  
"I think you just like getting him jealous. You're quite the attention hog."  
"Wha- I am not!" You said.  
"Look we're talking about you right now. I don't hear you asking about me." You rolled your eyes.  
"Izanagi... you're me. I AM talking about you."  
"...you win this one human." You laughed flipping your phone open.  
"Hey, this is Kou, if you're not busy why don't we hang out today? I'll invite Daisuke too. What do you say?" He asked, his usual bubbly personality ever so preasent.  
"Sure, I was just trying to think of something to do today." You said.  
"Really? Awesome, we'll be there to pick you up in a bit. Don't forget!" He said hanging up. You chuckled. Kou and Daisuke really did do everything together. You made you way to your room and changed out of your pajamas. It wasn't too long after that your doorbell rang. You opened it and the two boy smiled down at you.  
"We're gonna go to Okina Station," Kou announced and you nodded pulling your shoes on.  
"Sounds like fun," you said. You locked the door and headed out with the two.

The bus ride was long, but it didn't seem that way. The boys kept you entertained with their silly antics and conversations. When you arrived, you walked down the long steps and listened to the two complain about installing an elevator. As you reached the bottom Kou breathed in deep and exhaled over dramatically.  
"Ah, I haven't smelled air this bad in a long time." He commented. You chuckled and shook your head.  
"I know what you mean, I can't relax here..." Daisuke said.  
"Then why did we come here?" You asked them curiously. You wondered why exactly they would want to come to a place that they didn't feel comfortable being.  
"Well..." Daisuke started. "Chie said you were feeling a bit homesick, so..."  
"We thought a trip to a place like this would make ya feel more at home; even for a little while." Kou finished. You smiled slightly and they smiled in return. It was sweet of them to think such things and be willing to go passed their comfort zone just so you would feel more comfortable.  
"Thank you guys, that's very sweet of you." You said pulling the two of them in for a group hug. Kou laughed hugging you in return, but Daisuke seemed a bit uncomfortable.  
"This is kinda awkward..." He said.  
"Aw come on man, bring it in!" Kou replied and you laughed. You felt a bond between yourself and the two.  
"Thou art I... And I am thou...  
Thou hast established a new bond  
It brings thee closer to the truth...  
Thou shalt be blessed with creating personas of the strength arcana..."  
After a moment you separated from the two and the three of you shopped for a bit before returning to Inaba. You had to work after all. The two were a bit bummed, but you had gotten matching shirts you promised to wear together the next time you hung out; you insisted. You returned home, changed and left once again to head to the daycare center. The kind lady introduced you to each and every one of the friendly, happy children. She told you that she use to look after Nanako after he mother's passing. It was upsetting to think about, poor Nanako having to stay at a daycare center right after her mother's death, but the lady didn't seem to take notice to your discomfort. She was certainly a gossiper. She went on and on about the parents of each child.  
When you were finally fed up with it, you offered to play tag with the happy kid eager to join in. You ran around and played for the duration of the time. Parents soon started pouring in to pick up their children. Just when you were about to head home, you paused. A boy you'd played tag with earlier was sitting down looking rather gloomy. He was the last of the children to be picked up. He strangely look familiar now that you looked at him.  
"How are thing, _-chan? Has everything been picked up?" The care taker asked. She paused seeing the child standing alone. "Looks like Yuu-kun is still here... It's always like this though.." She said with a sigh.  
"Always like this? What do you mean?" You asked. Gossiping wasn't something you enjoyed hearing or talking about, but if this child's parents neglected to pick him up and care for him properly, then you'd certain involve yourself. It wasn't too long after said that, that a young woman approached the child.  
"Hi Yuu-kun. I'm sorry I'm late..." She said.  
"Whatever..." The boy said storming off toward where you assumed with the child's house. The woman turn to you and the care taker.  
"Oh, are you a new care taker? I'm sure Yuu-kun will cause you trouble. Please look after him." She said before walking off.  
"Yuuta Minami…" The caretaker started. "He's full of energy during his play sessions… Maybe too much energy. But once she arrives, he's a totally different kid… She's his stepmother, so I guess it can't be helped. Yuuta-kun's father got remarried to that woman you just met. I heard she's from the city… I really don't know what she's thinking. Perhaps that's why Yuuta-kun is a troublemaker at school, too… The other day, he…" You froze. Yuuta! That was the name of the boy Nanako liked! You smiled to the woman once her bickering stopped. She paid you and you left for home to pick up Nanako and head to Junes for dinner.  
As you walked inside, you smiled seeing her happy expression.  
"Welcome back!" She addressed. You smiled.  
"Want to go to Junes and pick out something for dinner?" You asked and she smiled.  
"Yeah!" She said happily. The two of you exited the house and walked toward Junes. The thought of the boy crossed your mind again.  
"So, Nanako-chan, what was Yuuta-kun's last name?" You asked curiously.  
"Hm? Oh it's Minami, why?" She asked curiously. You looked at her thoughtfully. It WAS the same boy.  
"Just curious." You said. "Did you two have fun today?" You asked. She nodded.  
"Yeah! But I had to leave early, because his step mom had to run a few errands." She said.  
"I see..." You said. Was she really running errands? She didn't show up with shopping bags or anything when she picked him up. It all seemed so odd. Nanako didn't notice your thoughtful expression, instead she went into detail about all of the fun things she did with Yuuta today. You listened to her all of the way to Junes. Yosuke didn't seem to be around, but you wouldn't have had time to talk to him, since Nanako continued talking about all of the things her and Yuuta had done together, even how they first met. You chuckled, finding it adorable. You paid for the foods you bought and headed toward the house once again.  
When you arrived, Dojima was home and he looked very exhausted. You cooked for the family, ate at the table as you watched the news and excused yourself to study for your exams. After a few frustrating hours trying to comprehend all of the material, you settled in for bed.


End file.
